Virgin Orbit delivered seven satellites into orbit on June 30, including cubesats for the U.S. Defense Department’s Rapid Agile Launch Initiative (RALI), a Polish-based startup planning to sell optical imagery to agricultural and energy customers and the first military satellite for the Royal Netherlands Air Force.
Germany has signed on the dotted line for a fleet of Boeing P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, but has insisted the type will be an interim solution.
A group of House Democrats led by Rep. John Garamendi of California has introduced legislation that would pause the development of the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent program until 2031 and extend the service life of the Minuteman III missiles to 2040.
The Swiss selection—announced June 30—adds to the F-35s growing tally of competition wins, the aircraft proving unbeatable in virtually every tender it has taken part in.
Russia’s Progress MS-17 cargo capsule, filled with 3,600 lb. of food, crew supplies and propellant, was on course for an automated docking with the International Space Station late July 1 following a successful launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
The agreement with Draken also includes the option for the contractor to purchase another 28 F-16s from the Netherlands, which are to be phased out of service through May 2024.
The six-year development phase of the UH-2 program has now been completed, paving the way for the rotorcraft to enter service with the Japan Ground Self Defence Force (JGSDF) where it will replace the Bell/Fuji Heavy Industries UH-1J helicopter.
Pegasus—short for Persistent German Airborne Surveillance Systems—will see Hensoldt equip a trio of Bombardier Global 6000 business jet platforms with a signals intelligence system called Kalaetron, a development of the company’s Integrated Signal Intelligence System (ISIS) which was developed for the failed Eurohawk program.
South Korea will develop and acquire an artillery interception system akin to the Israeli Iron Dome missile defense system to protect the country against rockets, artillery and missiles (RAM) from North Korea.
The V15 is a fixed-wing UAV featuring four vertical lift propellers for vertical-take-off-and-landing operations and a piston-powered propeller engine for conventional flight.
Moroccan and French military successfully completed the 2021 Tafilalet exercise – the biennial joint manoeuvre between the two nations' land and air forces.
The General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (GA-ASI) MQ-20 Avenger performed a Skyborg test flight on June 24 during the Orange Flag large force exercise at Edwards Air Force Base, California
For the first time in years, the House Appropriations defense subcommittee has proposed funding only the number of F-35s that the Pentagon asked for in fiscal 2022 instead of providing dollars for extra aircraft.
With sights on lunar and deep space missions, China has firmed up its road map to develop heavy-lift rockets based on the Long March 5 and the new Long March 9.
Airbus has flown its C295 turboprop airlifter with a range of precision-guided munitions as the company looks to develop an armed intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capability for the platform.
House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith (D-Wash.) has vowed not to kill the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent and is urging lawmakers to fully fund the Adaptive Engine Transition Program to mitigate F-35 woes.
Northrop Grumman’s 15th Cygnus resupply mission spacecraft departed the International Space Station on June 29 filled with trash and prepared for an orbit-raising maneuver for five small satellite deployments prior to making a destructive re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean.
British Defense Minister Ben Wallace has suggested that the number of F-35s purchased by the UK will depend on how industry reduces operating costs and whether domestically developed weapons are integrated onto the aircraft.
