DroneDJ reports that the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) has counted up the number of Part 107 waivers that have been issued by the FAA since the implementation of the Part 107 rules on commercial UAS in 2016, “finding just over 4,000 cases, and some interesting trends.” Under Part 107, commercial UAVs under 55

Air Force Times reports that the COVID-19 pandemic “has rattled Lockheed Martin’s aeronautics business, with the F-35 joint strike fighter program facing the prospect of a slowdown in deliveries, company executives said Tuesday.” Production “of the F-35 has been the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic so far, said Ken Possenriede, the company’s chief financial

Spaceflight Now reports that NASA “has settled on a solid-fueled design for a miniature rocket with a first-of-its-kind purpose: Launching a payload from Mars for a trip back to Earth.” The “small launcher is called a Mars Ascent Vehicle, or MAV,” and will be used for the Mars Sample Return mission in 2026. With “two launches

The AP reports that The Boeing Company “and a small number of other manufacturers around the U.S. geared up Monday to resume production this week amid pressure from President Donald Trump to reopen the economy and resistance from governors who warn there is not enough testing yet to keep the coronavirus in check.” Boeing “said it will

Reuters reported that The Boeing Company announced Friday that it plans to restart production at its facilities in the Philadelphia area next week following two weeks of suspended work due to the coronavirus pandemic. Boeing “said operations at its Philadelphia plants, which manufacture military rotorcraft including the H-47 Chinook, V-22 Osprey and MH-139A Grey Wolf,

CNBC reported that “Intelsat’s IS-901 satellite is nearly 20 years old, and well beyond its expected lifespan, but a small spacecraft built by Northrop Grumman succeeded in docking with the satellite and giving it another five years of service, the companies announced on Friday.” The “feat is a space industry first, as extending the life

Reuters reports that The Boeing Company “said it will resume commercial airplane production next week in” Washington state “after suspending operations last month in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.” Approximately “27,000 people in the Puget Sound area will return to production of the 747, 767, 777 and 787 programs.” Full Story (Reuters)

Aviation Today reports that “almost all players in the emerging urban air mobility industry have converged on the idea of using fully-electric aircraft, powered by lithium-ion batteries, to create affordable aerial transit options for relatively short distances. But a few companies continue to develop and advocate for the use of hydrogen fuel cells in VTOL [vertical

AIAA will hold its first fully virtual event, 2020 AIAA AVIATION Forum, 15–19 June, in response to the spread of COVID-19.

Aviation Week reports that Aurora Flight Sciences founder and former CEO John Langford “is launching a new venture to develop hybrid-electric regional transport aircraft.” The “new company, called Electra, is planned to launch this summer and is looking at a family of short-takeoff-and-landing (STOL) aircraft with from 4-6 to 35-40 seats.” Langford said that Electra is

Florida Today reports that SpaceX “teams are now targeting next week for the launch of a Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center with a batch of the company’s internet-beaming broadband satellites.” If “schedules hold, the 230-foot-tall rocket will vault off pad 39A at 3:16 p.m. next Thursday.” A Space Force-issued “weather forecast for the attempt

Aviation Today reports that “business aviation OEMs and avionics makers are adjusting to the COVID-19 landscape through various measures, including decreasing production and moving to deliver critical medical supplies and produce ventilators and other equipment to combat the virus.” A representative of Honda Aircraft Company said in an email, “Honda Aircraft Company has temporarily adjusted the

ExecutiveGov reports that NASA “has docked the Mars helicopter to the Perseverance rover in preparation for the upcoming mission scheduled 10 months from now.” NASA “performed the installation at the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility within Kennedy Space Center, NASA’s James Cawley wrote in a blog posted Friday.” NASA “expects the Perseverance rover to arrive on

FedScoop reports that DOD “plans to keep many parts of its recently enhanced teleworking capabilities in place for the long-term, hoping to use the response to the coronavirus pandemic as a springboard for a more digitally connected and telework-ready military.” In recent weeks, the Army “has experienced a 400 percent increase in network access for

Airforce Technology reports that General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA‑ASI) “has flown a new MQ-9 reaper remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) to a customer location for the first time at Holloman Air Force Base (AFB) in New Mexico.” The “flight took off from GA-ASI’s Flight Operations Center in Palmdale, California and flew through the National Airspace System (NAS).”

FreightWaves reported that a new report from Frost & Sullivan “forecasts that the number of deployed drones will increase from 2.44 million in 2019 to 2.91 million in 2023,” with most of these being used to perform dangerous or undesirable functions, such as building and oil tanker inspection. Since Amazon “first began developing drones in 2013

Space News reports that Virgin Orbit “completed a captive carry test flight of its LauncherOne system April 12, the final major milestone before the company performs its first orbital launch attempt.” The company’s “modified Boeing 747 aircraft, with a LauncherOne rocket attached to its left wing, took off from the Mojave Air and Space Port in

FlightGlobal reports that Airbus Helicopters “insists that its Racer high-speed technology demonstrator is still on track to meet a revised first flight deadline of late 2021, despite some development items lagging behind schedule.” Part “of the EU’s Clean Sky 2 program, the Racer is a compound helicopter design featuring twin pusher propellers mounted on V-shaped box-wings.”

Spaceflight Now reports that the Soyuz spacecraft launch “went smoothly,” and “eight minutes and 46 seconds after liftoff, the booster’s third stage engine shut down and the Soyuz spacecraft was released to fly on its own. A few seconds later, its two solar arrays snapped open and antennas deployed as planned.” The International Space Station (ISS)

Transport Topics reports that Alphabet’s Wing unit “is seeing a dramatic increase in the number of customers using its drone delivery service in rural Virginia during the COVID-19 pandemic.” Wing “has added new vendors and expanded the items customers can order to better serve people during the epidemic, the company said in a statement April 8.”

Spaceflight Now reports that although US “military officials said Tuesday the launch of the next satellite for the GPS navigation network – planned for April 29 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket – has been delayed to no earlier than June 30 to avoid exposing launch crews to the COVID-19 viral disease,” Space Force officials

Transportation Today reports that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) “will give nearly $2.6 million in grants to universities for research into drones.” The FAA “said the universities will comprise the agency’s Air Transportation Center of Excellence for Unmanned Aircraft Systems(AUS), also known as the Alliance for System Safety of UAS through Research Excellence (ASSURE).” Transportation

Reuters reports that The Boeing Company announced Tuesday that it is making two new upgrades to the 737 MAX’s flight control computer as the company seeks to return the 737 MAX to the skies. Boeing “said one issue involves hypothetical faults in the flight control computer microprocessor, which could potentially lead to a runaway stabilizer, while

The Bristol (VA) Herald Courier  reports that the US Air Force “announced Monday it is ready to test its first high-energy lasers for use against enemy drones overseas.” The new lasers, “with models under consideration from the Air Force lab and defense contractor Raytheon, would take aim at drones that have already proven worrisome in the

CNBC reports that SpaceX “has had six employees test positive for COVID-19 as of Monday, according to an internal company memo seen by CNBC.” SpaceX “operations have continued after it was deemed ‘mission essential’ by the Department of Defense.” NASA, “like the Pentagon, has also determined that its upcoming SpaceX Demo-2 launch is mission essential. NASA

Spaceflight Now reported that SpaceX’s SN3 prototype Starship space vehicle “collapsed during pressure testing early Friday at the company’s facility in South Texas – the program’s third failure during such testing since November – but assembly of a new version is already underway.” The “stainless steel cylinder appeared to rupture near its top after filling

Reuters reported that Lockheed Martin “said on Friday it hired about 1,000 employees in the last two weeks and increased payments to suppliers to counter the impact from the coronavirus pandemic.” The “company, which last week pledged to advance more than $50 million to defense suppliers, said it was increasing its payment by $53 million to

ExecutiveGov reports that SpaceX’s Dragon “resupply spacecraft will leave the International Space Station (ISS), carrying over 4,000 pounds of scientific experiments and other cargo, on Monday, April 6. NASA Television and the agency’s website will broadcast its departure live beginning at 9:30 a.m. EDT, the company announced on Thursday.” Full Story (UPI)

UPI reports that the Navy “will award some contracts earlier than planned in an effort to offset the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the defense industry.” Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research James Geurts “told reporters the Navy is planning on awarding contracts for a variety of initiatives that have already been authorized and

The AP reports that NASA “said Wednesday that Americans from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and four U.S. territories applied to be part of the space agency’s next astronaut class. The monthlong application period ended Tuesday.” More than 12,000 people applied, from which a class will be selected. Recent “astronaut classes have ranged from eight

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michele McDonald 703.264.7542 [email protected] April 2, 2020 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), the world’s leading professional society dedicated to the advancement of the entire aerospace community, announced today that all of its events moving forward will offer attendees and industry partners the added benefit of

Bloomberg reports that The Boeing Company “is sticking to its estimate of a mid-year return to service” of its 737 MAX, “but to do so, the Chicago-based manufacturer will have to pull off the ultimate work-from-home challenge: certifying an airplane with regulators who are self-isolating on different continents.” One analyst, “Carter Copeland of Melius Research, predicted

SPACE reports that SpaceX “just released a users’ guide for Starship, the reusable spaceship-rocket combo the company is developing to help colonize Mars. As the guide makes clear, Starship is designed to be a flexible transportation system, one capable of delivering both people and payloads to a variety of off-Earth destinations.” The “guide lays out

Aerospace America reports that on March 30, DoD “added a new tactic to its prototyping repertoire when it released a document officially called the ‘Global Needs Statement’ or unofficially the Global RFI.” The “interest areas are an eclectic mix designed to resolve a concern held by Tim Dare, who is in charge of developmental test, evaluation

Reuters reports that the Federal Aviation Administration “is rejiggering staffing at air traffic control centers to respond to the dramatic falloff in flights and to reduce the impact of coronavirus cases.” An FAA “flexible schedule agreement seen by Reuters said all air traffic facilities would divide personnel ‘into the maximum number of crews possible, with each

SPACE reports that the next NASA mission to Mars “will carry what is meant to become the first aircraft to fly on another planet, and that experimental helicopter just spun its blades on Earth for the last time.” The Mars Helicopter “is scheduled to launch in July with the new Mars rover, now dubbed Perseverance,

The Financial Times reports that Blue Origin is continuing to operate as it has been deemed essential by DoD. DoD ruled Blue Origin exempt from the national lockdown because of its work on the development of the New Glenn reusable rocket system. Full Story (Financial Times – subscription publication)

Space News reported that “with the coronavirus pandemic limiting options for personnel to gather in mission control centers to operate spacecraft, some companies are turning to virtual approaches to maintain their spacecraft.” Kubos CEO Marshall Culpepper said, “With current technology, there’s no technical reason to require operators to be within visual range of a satellite

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michele McDonald 703.264.7542 [email protected] March 27, 2020 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) applauds the passage of the $2.2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act designed to help support workers, small businesses, and industries impacted by the pandemic. AIAA is grateful for the

The Houston Chronicle reports that due to the coronavirus outbreak, pressure has been building on several projects such as “the already ambitious Trump administration goal of reaching the moon by 2024,” as well as “the Lucy spacecraft and the Perseverance Mars rover,” which “have very specific launch windows that would be costly to miss.” The goal to

Forbes reports that “with no passengers filling aircraft seats as demand dwindles in the wake of Covid-19, an increasing number of airlines are now piling cargo in the cabins of their aircraft in the hope to generate at least a fraction of the revenue they would have generated under normal circumstances.” On Thursday, Etihad Airways

SPACE reports that SpaceX “is looking to hire lots of folks to help ramp up production and testing of its ambitious Starship Mars-colonizing architecture over the coming months – and the company recently issued a public recruiting pitch.” SpaceX Lead Manufacturing Engineer Jessica Anderson said during a webcast last week, “The design goal for Starship is

Space News reports that “in a virtual town hall meeting March 25, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and other agency officials said they’re in discussions with other federal agencies, as well as state and local governments, about how the agency can best contribute to efforts to combat the growing [coronavirus] pandemic.” Bridenstine said, “NASA is involved in

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michele McDonald 703.264.7542 [email protected] Honored for Efforts to Promote Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Education March 25, 2020 – Reston, Va. – Three K–12 educators from across the United States have won the 2020 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Educator Achievement Awards, honoring their efforts to promote science, technology, engineering,

Reuters reports that The Boeing Company “plans to restart 737 MAX production by May, ending a months-long halt triggered by a safety ban on its best-selling jet after fatal crashes, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.” Boeing’s “planning hinges on the scale of disruptions from the fast spreading coronavirus, and U.S. regulators clearing

CNBC reports that “at least one employee and one outside health care provider at SpaceX’s headquarters in Hawthorne, California, have tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus, sending some employees into quarantine, according to an internal memo seen by CNBC.” SpaceX “is asking the employees it sent home to remain in quarantine and monitor their own health

The US Naval Institute reports that the first US Marine Corps F-35C squadron “reached an important milestone, receiving a ‘safe for flight’ operations certification that will allow them to train and operate independently of the Navy’s fleet replacement squadron. Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 314 was certified on March 20, after working with Strike Fighter Squadron

Daily Express (UK) reports that NASA “supercomputers are joining the effort to look for potential treatment and vaccine candidates for COVID-19.” On Monday, the White House announced the initiative, which will bring “together NASA and the National Science Foundation as well as hosting the Department of Energy laboratories, companies and academic institutions” which are “looking to

Spaceflight Now reported that a Soyuz “rocket and Fregat upper stage lifted off Saturday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, delivering 34 more satellites to orbit for OneWeb’s space-based Internet network in the company’s second launch this year.” The “Fregat carried a multi-payload dispenser produced by RUAG Space in Sweden, which released the 34 satellites in

Reuters reports that Airbus “confirmed on Sunday it would resume only partial aircraft production when its French and Spanish factories reopen on Monday after a…shutdown to tackle health concerns over the coronavirus.” Workstations “will only open when it is safe to do so, Airbus said, without saying how steeply its production would fall.” Full Story