Emerging Technologies

Every production ramp-up has chokepoints, but determining where they will be is not so obvious.

But ultimate choice has not been made.

Agreement includes plans for six vertiports.

Israeli UAS certified; hybrid-electric Brazilian; Seastar’s “Mini Me”; Boeing’s big SAF buy; hydrogen aviation in South Korea

Singapore-headquartered H3 Dynamics has tested what it said is the first integrated hydrogen-electric powertrain nacelle, designed to enable distributed propulsion for a range of aircraft sizes.

Sikorsky’s S-70A optionally piloted vehicle completes 30-min. mission with no one aboard.

Platform and space tug planned for Earth-Moon Lagrange Point 1.

Hydrogen supplier Air Liquide and Airbus have signed a memorandum of understanding with Korean Air and the operator of Incheon International Airport to study the development of infrastructure required to support the deployment of hydrogen-powered aircraft.

U.S. startup Odys Aerospace has secured $12.4 million in seed funding to build a subscale demonstrator of an unconventional hybrid-electric aircraft that combines vertical takeoff and landing capability with high cruise efficiency to provide regional range at low operating cost.

Sydney-based Aviation H2 was founded toward the end of 2021 with the goal of flying Australia’s first hydrogen-fueled aircraft within 18 months.

Brazilian startup Desaer has partnered with electric propulsion developer MagniX to develop a hybrid-electric version of its planned ATL-100 regional utility transport.

Potential military missions for the aircraft include “island hopping and distributed cargo logistics in the Indo-Pacific theater or operations in areas with limited infrastructure like Africa,” an Electra executive says.

The air cargo industry needs to ramp up digitalization, but it’s a slow path.

Hydrogen powertrain iron bird; sea-skimming electric seagliders; UK space sustainability projects; ski resort eSTOL; SAF from microalgae.

Suppliers will sit between a rock and hard place, as list prices fall and manufacturing costs rise.

U.S. regional airline Mesa Air Group has invested in startup Regent and signed a letter of intent to purchase 200 of its sea-skimming electric seagliders for overwater routes between coastal cities.

Boeing says successful tests of an all-composite cryogenic fuel tank at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center clear the way for large-scale application of the lightweight technology in future spacecraft and aircraft.

GE Aviation has teamed with Boeing and its subsidiary Aurora Flight Sciences to modify a Saab 340B into a flying hybrid electric testbed for the recently awarded NASA Electrified Powertrain Flight Demonstration project.

Bloomberg’s Hyperdrive newsletter outlines several actions taken in China relative to electric power and autonomy that could be harbingers of what’s up next around the world.

An ATR 72-600 prototype performed a series of ground and flight tests with one of its turboprop engines running on 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

The project is symbolic of the closer UK-Japan links, UK Asia-Pacific pivot and Japan broadening defense relationships beyond U.S.

Enabling aircraft to communicate could produce cost savings and environmental improvements, but improved data transfer is needed.

Airlines and MROs are using only a fraction of available data. How can the industry overcome challenges in using data’s full potential?

Boeing is to invest a further $450 million in urban air mobility joint venture Wisk.

Boom’s supersonic flight path continues with engine tests on the XB-1 and a decision to assemble the Overture airliner in North Carolina.