Aerospace

With respect to the tragic end of the R-101 there seems little that can be added to what has already appeared in print. An air crash that results in complete loss by fire usually remains somewhat of a mystery as regards the cause or causes of the crash.

Since we last published the box score a year ago, the record of the rigid airship has continued to improve. It is still true that there have been no disasters to ships of that type on the North Atlantic route. Eleven wholly successful crossings have been made. The flight on which the Graf Zeppelin had to turn back still constitutes the only departure from a perfect record.

Boeing Defense, Space & Security chief Chris Chadwick says established contractors need to show their customers “the art of the possible from an innovation perspective.”

The man running Google X’s Project Wing sees few limits to the potential for delivery UAVs once they become a safe and accepted part of everyday life.

Airbus is evaluating composite wing sections to improve drag-reducing natural laminar flow for future aircraft models.

U.K.-based Hybrid Air Vehicles taps Internet crowdfunding to move forward with development of Airlander 10 airship.

Tailsitting vertical-takeoff flying wing; tethered UAV follows truck; morphing flaps on the move; Navy lab’s unusual designs; Roomba inventor’s drone for everyone.

U.S. newsgathering, precision agriculture and railroad companies take the lead in pushing small UAS use beyond the initial tight limits outlined by the FAA.

Within the last two months, three orders have been announced for close to a total of 100 Rafales, and suddenly the future looks bright.

NASA plans to dynamically test flexible wing technology on a modified Gulfstream III later this year after successfully completing initial trials of a morphing flap at the agency’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in California.

Horizon Energy Systems of Singapore tackles airborne-endurance problem that has beset UAVS.

Vertical flight on 10 electric engines; unmanned casualty evacuation demonstrated; aviation’s climate impact more than CO2; Europe demos sensor-fused detect-and-avoid; 3-D-printed UAS enters production.

Helicopter manufacturer stays on track to develop certifiable autonomy technology to assist—or replace—crews in military and commercial aircraft.

Aero Kinetics brings aerospace-grade materials and systems, FAA type-certification experience to multirotor small UAS market.

AW609 test pilots explore uncharted territory in the tiltrotor’s flight regime.

Involvement in the small UAS market is taking defense giant Lockheed Martin into unfamiliar areas such as firefighting, shark-spotting, farm-surveying, disaster-mapping and search and rescue.

Carter unveils plans and delivers observations that could weigh on defense company strategies and how those businesses are valued.

A look inside how Northrop Grumman and the U.S. Navy autonomously refueled an unmanned aircraft in flight, and what it could mean for aviation

U.S. Navy faces a choice between reducing risk and reducing competition for the Uclass carrier-based unmanned aircraft if it keeps X-47B unmanned combat air system demonstrators flying.

Slow throttle valve response is blamed for the failure of SpaceX’s latest attempt to recover and reuse the first stage of its Falcon 9v1.1 launch vehicle.

NASA, FAA and industry join to reduce burden of costly, time-consuming materials and structures testing that comes with using carbon fiber in aircraft.

Making a flying car a good aircraft is one challenge; making it good to drive is another.

Russia’s MS-21 gets active side-sticks; EcoDemo 757 tests active-flow-control tail; British air-breathing rocket engine passes AFRL exam; small UAS aims for 100-hr.-plus flight; Solar Impulse prepares for cross-Pacific flight.

A “green” fuel is intended to make hot meals cooked in the field safer—from an environmental standpoint.

Recent analysis indicates North America led other regions for major MRO investments in 2012-13, and the momentum appears to be accelerating.