Aviation Week & Space Technology

Powering unmanned aircraft via laser beam could increase endurance and allow larger payloads, with high-bandwidth data sent back over the same beam.

Airbus and Boeing ramp up production and roll out new models as new competitors undergo flight testing.

Potential Chinese buyers of large business jets assume that Washington and Beijing will resolve their trade dispute.

Europe’s major players in space have long questioned the business case of reusing launchers but are evidently changing their minds.

Canada backs Bell air taxi; DARPA wants fast launches; Safran invests in microturbines; Volocopter’s urban mobility vision; SkyNRG tests new biofuel

Lynda Rutledge was appointed program executive officer for the U.S. Air Force Mobility Directorate at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.

Operators are seeking greater efficiency, with prognostics beginning to emerge as a factor.

“We’re going to see small and medium-sized companies here in Montreal get the opportunity to deal with Airbus as suppliers,” said Dominque Anglade.

Readers mull the merit of the MQ-25; multiple sources in mission-critical ops; the need for LBFD; regulatory compliance for cabin redesigns; and laud time-based separation.

New blades that will solve issue are at least a year away. Regulators to slash ETOPS clearance for low-time aircraft to 140 min., down from 330 min.

U.S. Army is accelerating several programs to improve air defense of deployed forces, particularly against the growing threat from drones.

Emergency landing of Southwest Boeing 737 focuses attention on CFM56 engine type.

A rare alignment of military space objectives and commercial initiatives catapult industry into a new frontier.

The team aims to demo the tactical value of the coaxial-rotor compound helicopter to the medium-lift utility mission now performed by the Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk.

Bell aims to demonstrate that its advanced tiltrotor is affordable and has hover performance and low-speed agility equivalent to a helicopter.

As the aerospace industry welcomes the pending wave of aircraft products and services, experts warn that the promises of today can turn into problems.

Almost 70% of Indian defense procurement comes from abroad. Private companies will grow as more is made locally.

France hopes to benefit from a favorable business climate to find Indian suppliers and joint ventures, but faces logistical challenges and stiff competition.

GE and a Honeywell/Pratt & Whitney team are developing competing engines to replace the GE T700 that currently powers the UH-60M and AH-64-E.

The Norwegian carrier is known for its flights to harsh locations in the Arctic Circle, but wants to grow into a wider European range.

The UK’s aerospace sector enjoys committed government support, sustained investment in innovation and new technology, and a growing order book.

Sikorsky is hoping fly-by-wire and future growth capacity can secure international exports.

How contractors and the Pentagon could balance requirements and budgets in the coming years.

The U.S. Department of Defense is looking to inject competition into the supply chain as support costs mount.

Germany needs 40-60 new heavy-lift helicopters to replace its CH-53G Stallions. Photos: CH-53K by Thinh D. Nguye, Andrew McMurtrie and Damien A. Guarnieri/Lockheed Martin; CH-47 by Tony Osborne/AW&ST