Aviation Week & Space Technology

Many airlines want the lowest maintenance cost possible, but also wish to retain full flexibility.

Defense officials need to do more than sound like an abusive partner returning to his lover (“Baby, it will be different this time”).

If the consequences of a collision with a UAS could be detailed, that could be a powerful disincentive to irresponsible behavior.

Directed energy an MDA priority; states filling void on UAV rules; FAA modernizes rules for amateur rockets and increased costs for a GPS system.

Slowing the rapid rate of growth of the Commercial Crew program is not a “cut,” but President Obama’s low-ball budget requests for Orion and the Space Launch System are.

Budget experts begin to worry about a potential government shutdown; the FAA disputes method of finding control tower inefficiencies; and NASA tells lawmakers it is tough on Space X.

With the current strategy, it could take 20 years to find wreckage of the Malaysia Airlines 777-200ER.

The Air Force is sending F-22s to Europe, airline pilots prepare for a stopgap FAA bill, Pakistan is making 20 nuclear weapons a year and a blunt solution to unwanted drone flights.

If the FAA can’t keep UAVs away from airports, maybe Congress can. The Pentagon plans more UAV patrols. Air Line pilots prepare for a decision on open skies, and Democrats plead for budget talks.

Human missions to Mars could prove difficult without artificial gravity. Why has the space community not moved forward on this basic principle?

Aviation Week and its readers mourn the loss of a unique voice.

Senator decries added airline fees; geometry helps figure out Ukrainian plane downing; FAA investigates Love Field; and a special exception in American Samoa

The NTSB’s aviation chief says recent accidents show cockpit videos are invaluable in determining crash causes.

Sen. Nelson wants to shed light on opaque airline fees. NASA buys more launches with Russia. And the Pentagon welcomes a new set of leaders.

“Autonomous weapons will become the Kalashnikovs of tomorrow,” a letter from the heavyweights of science and engineering says.

Global competition is forcing the U.S. and allies to pursue smaller, more powerful electromagnetic weaponry.

Michael Donley says that, given the potential for a protest, an extra dose of discipline is needed in selecting who will build the Air Force’s next-generation bomber.

The nation’s manufacturers take on independent billionaires in Ex-Im fight; the Army’s internal war over Apaches; the cost of a heavy-lift launcher.

Congress is moving to prolong dependence on Russia to launch astronauts, undercut commercial space and squeeze aeronautics research.

Despite Iran deal, the Middle East is a hotbed of weapons sales, FAA threatens to downgrade Thai aviation safety, cost of operating the ISS skyrockets and a politician’s home-state advantage.

Will McCain’s proposal to bring service chiefs into weapons-buying process stand? Will Obama side with airlines or airframe makers? And the space economy grows.

The unfolding shift from air traffic control to air traffic management is rife with opportunities and fraught with peril.

Lapse in Ex-Im bank assistance could hurt Boeing in the long term, and the general aviation community sooner; Former NASA chief provides another perspective on SpaceX’s commercial viability.

Why priorities of the Pentagon and its key contractors are not lining up.

Defense contractors should emulate practices of leading commercial tech companies.