Aerospace Daily & Defense Report

By Steve Trimble
Northrop will combine its skillset in digital engineering with an “extensive knowledge in advanced technology weapons, autonomous systems and strike platforms to increase weapon range and effectiveness,” said Jaime Engdahl, Northrop’s program director for kinetic weapons and emerging capabilities.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Irene Klotz
China’s Tianwen-1 mother ship arrived in Martian orbit on Feb. 10, setting the stage for a multi-spacecraft exploration initiative during the country’s first visit to the red planet.
Space

By Lee Hudson
The U.S. Space Force is looking to industry for a tactically responsive launch provider for two future missions and set a cost cap of $7.5 million for each launch.
Space

By Bill Carey
Garmin International said Feb. 10 that Joby Aviation has selected the Garmin G3000 integrated avionics suite for the electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicle it is developing.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Michael Bruno
Newly formed Karman Missile & Space Systems, a large pure-play supplier for the space, missile, interceptor and hypersonic markets, is bulking up just weeks into its existence with the acquisition of AAE Aerospace, a manufacturer of high-temperature composites for the missile, interceptor, and space sectors.
Space

By Tony Osborne
Jamaica’s Defense Force (JDF) has ordered six Bell 505 single-engine turbine helicopters to be used for public safety missions and pilot training.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Mark Carreau
After a shaky 2020, the outlook for space from government and commercial perspectives looks more favorable, though not without notable challenges, a lineup of experienced players from the two sectors say.
Space

By Maxim Pyadushkin
Russia wants to renew its space tourism activities by offering dedicated commercial missions to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard Soyuz rockets.
Commercial Space

By Graham Warwick
Urban air mobility startup Archer is to go public in a deal that will raise up to $1.1 billion to fund commercialization of the company’s all-electric air taxi.
Advanced Air Mobility

By Irene Klotz
NASA on Feb. 9 awarded SpaceX a $331 million contract for Falcon Heavy launch and support services to send the first two modules of its planned Gateway outpost toward lunar orbit.
Space

By Irene Klotz, Maxim Pyadushkin
With one of its two U.S. commercial space taxi lines not yet operational, NASA is considering bartering for an extra seat on a Russian Soyuz capsule slated to launch in April or May to the International Space Station (ISS), the agency said Feb. 9.
Space

By Michael Bruno
Vertical Aerospace has tapped aerospace composites provider Solvay to supply the VA-1X electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi program.
Advanced Air Mobility

By Bill Carey
Spatial disorientation of the pilot led to the fatal crash of a Sikorsky S-76B helicopter in hilly terrain northwest of Los Angeles in January 2020 that killed basketball legend Kobe Bryant and eight others, the NTSB has found.
Safety, Ops & Regulation

By Lee Hudson
The U.S. Navy is adding 16 refurbished Harpoon Block IC missiles to its inventory to expand the anti-ship missile capacity of its Los Angeles-class submarine fleet.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Irene Klotz
Telesat has awarded a $3 billion contact to Thales Alenia Space to build its planned 298-member low Earth orbit broadband constellation, named Lightspeed.
Commercial Space

By Tony Osborne
Turkey will send a probe to make a hard landing on the Moon in 2023 as part of celebrations of the country’s centenary, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has declared.
Space

By Lee Hudson
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is asking the Pentagon to launch a formal investigation into four fatal UH-60 crashes to determine whether there is a systemic problem with the helicopter.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Steve Trimble
Northrop will engage in an analysis of alternatives for the Advanced Air Refueling program by Air Mobility Command, which is scheduled to begin in 2022.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Irene Klotz
The Emirates Mars Mission Hope spacecraft completed a 27-min. braking burn to put itself into orbit on Feb. 9, earning the United Arab Emirates a place in history as the first Arab nation to successfully reach the red planet.
Space

By Graham Warwick
British Airways is to invest in a sustainable aviation fuel plant to be built in the U.S. and anticipates receiving 7,500 metric tonnes a year of low-carbon jet fuel from the facility beginning at the end of 2022.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Michael Bruno
Cubic, a military training and C4ISR services specialist, will be taken private in a $2.8 billion takeover by Veritas Capital and Evergreen Coast Capital, an affiliate of Elliott Investment Management.
Sensors & Electronic Warfare

By Steve Trimble
The FAA has approved the first Re-entry Site Operator License for the Launch and Landing Facility in Titusville Florida, clearing the way for future
Space

By Mark Carreau
Russia’s MS-15 cargo capsule, filled with trash and discarded equipment, departed the International Space Station (ISS) early Feb. 9 for a destructive re-entry into the South Pacific Ocean.
Space

By Graham Warwick
Two projects have been announced in the Netherlands with the goal of producing carbon-neutral synthetic jet fuel using renewable energy.
Airports & Networks

By Guy Norris
NASA is transitioning long-running hypersonic technology studies increasingly toward potential commercial applications and has awarded two new contracts supporting high speed design and propulsion work to Aerion Supersonic and GE Aviation respectively.
Aircraft & Propulsion