Aerospace

Technology for the next-gen GEnx engine is focused on an array of hot-section parts made from lightweight ceramic matrix composites.

U.K. releases more government and industry money for commercial aerospace R&D projects. The post-Brexit future is unclear for EU-funded efforts.

​In 1916, Bill Boeing declared “we could build a better airplane” then went on to found The Boeing Company. Marcel Bloch (later Dassault) built his first propeller, symbolizing his entry into aerospace and forming what would become a French industry giant. In the same year, the ‘grandfather’ of Aviation Week & Space Technology magazine was first published. One hundred years later, all three companies are here at the Farnborough Airshow, celebrating their milestones and looking to the future.

Airbus announces winners of the cargo-drone crowdsourcing design challenge run with Local Motors, calling the quality of entries “enormous and astounding” and the cocreation process “a breath of fresh air.”

Virgin Galactic’s LauncherOne project has kick-started the creation of new, vertically integrated, rocket development and manufacturing capabilities in California.

Suppliers increasingly distinguish themselves with investments in additive manufacturing.

Airbus Helicopters has flight tested hybrid-electric propulsion but says batteries and motors must improve dramatically before it becomes practical and valuable to the customer.

Rolls-Royce has a lot riding on key first flights of its XWB-87 engine on the A350-1000 and its Trent 1000 TEN on the 787.

GE and the U.S. Air Force are conducting advanced compressor and fan rig testing that could lead to a follow-on development and test regime of full three-stream, adaptive combat engines.

Design initiatives and lower manufacturing concepts devised for new space are being used for the latest mainstream space projects.

Airbus flies electric ECS; Safran’s high power-density diesel; can digital chemistry grow UAVs?; IAI’s Bigger Role in Clean Sky 2; ultracapacitor energy storage for cargo airship.

Aviation Week editors predict what we’ll see and hear at next week’s U.K. airshow, including the dreaded “B” word.

EcoDemonstrator plan builds on airframers' earlier cooperative agreement encompassing biofuel research initiative.

Like many other developers of small satellites, NovaWurks is waiting for a piggyback launch. But the company benefits from a unique spacecraft design.

India’s Tejas light fighter is late, does not meet requirements, but it is affordable. Planned upgrades could make it a capable machine—given a few more years.

The long-term prosperity of the plan rests squarely on how the geared turbofan engines will be maintained and supported.

There are strong reasons to doubt that Iran will ride to the commercial industry’s rescue this year—or anytime soon.

What will be the broader ramifications of Brexit on the aerospace industry, and has the market has appropriately priced this in?

Airbus and its Tier 1 partners, led by GKN Aerospace, have invested heavily to make the U.K. a center for wing design and manufacturer. What will it take to keep that lead?

ESaero uses EC-150 concept for a 150-seat turboelectric airliner to advance its understanding of the integration challenges and ramifications of distributed electric propulsion.

AI wins in air combat; Airvolt puts motors to the test; Missing-link Citation uncovered; PAL-V teases commercial flying car for 2018.

NASA, industry look at different ways to build and control high-aspect-ratio, low-drag wings for future commercial aircraft

To build the 777X, Boeing marries existing facilities with new manufacturing processes yet to be proven.

Boeing’s incorporation of touch screens in the 777X cockpit will mark the first time this technology is used in a commercial transport’s fixed displays.

The British people have spoken, and their decision has caused reverberations around the world. The U.K.'s aerospace sector is the largest in Europe and second largest in the world. What does the Brexit vote mean for the future of the sector?