SPACE reports that Northrop Grumman is targeting a Friday “launch of its next Cygnus cargo ship filled with NASA supplies bound for the” ISS. The mission, which has been delayed since February 9, is scheduled to launch the uncrewed Cygnus spacecraft aboard an Antares rocket at 3:43 p.m. EST from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at NASA’s

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michele McDonald 703.264.7542 [email protected] February 14, 2020 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) congratulates the Louisville Regional Airport Authority as the 2020 winner of the Jay Hollingsworth Speas Airport Award for their area safety program. The Louisville Regional Airport Authority (LRAA) won the award “for seeking

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michele McDonald 703.264.7542 [email protected] February 13, 2020 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) congratulates AIAA Fellow Darryll J. Pines on becoming the next president of the University of Maryland. Pines has been the dean of the university’s Clark School of Engineering at College Park since January

Florida Today reports that Air Force weather forecasters “are expecting 60% ‘go’ conditions for” Saturday’s “10:46 a.m. liftoff from Launch Complex 40 with another batch of 60 Starlink internet satellites.” The 45th Weather Squadron said, “For the launch window Saturday morning, a few showers will linger off the coast. With low-level winds from the east,

Spaceflight Now reports that Christina Koch, “six days after returning from a record 11-month stay aboard the” ISS, “said Wednesday she’s re-adapting to gravity with no major problems.” Koch told reporters at the Johnson Space Center, “I’m really fortunate, a lot of people…when you’re re-adapting to one G (gravity) on Earth, you might experience some

Reuters reports that FAA Administrator Steve Dickson “has set out in detail a ‘waterfall’ of actions that must be carried out before the grounded Boeing 737 MAX returns to service.” During a briefing to reporters at the Singapore Airshow, Dickson described a variety of “actions that must be carried out.” They include a “certification test flight,”

CNET News reports that NASA announced Tuesday that it will be accepting applications “for its next generation of astronauts” between March 2 and March 31. NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said in a statement, “We’re on the verge of sending the first woman and next man to the Moon by 2024.” He added that the agency would

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michele McDonald 703.264.7542 [email protected] February 12, 2020 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) congratulates the newly elected members of the prestigious National Academy of Engineering (NAE), nine of whom are AIAA members or award winners. “These newly elected NAE members are already well known to AIAA for

CNN reported that NASA engineers were able to revive the Voyager 2 spacecraft following a January 25 incident in which the spacecraft failed to conduct a scheduled maneuver. The failure “triggered the spacecraft’s fault protection software routine, which responds if it senses that Voyager 2 is consuming too much energy,” and caused it to shut

Reuters reports that on Tuesday at the Singapore Airshow, Airbus “unveiled a curvaceous aircraft design that blends wing and body, designed to slash carbon emissions by some 20%.” Airbus had been conducting flight tests of the plane “at a secret location in central France since last year.” Blended Wing Body Aircraft “are complex to control

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michele McDonald 703.264.7542 [email protected] February 10, 2020 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) mourns the passing of Jerry Grey, an AIAA Honorary Fellow and founding publisher of Aerospace America, the Institute’s flagship publication. Grey died on 4 February 2020 from complications of pneumonia at age 93.

The New York Times reported that government agencies “are split on how best to handle national security concerns surrounding popular and ubiquitous Chinese-made” UAVs. The Department of the Interior “grounded all those made in China or built with Chinese parts” in October and “reaffirmed” the decision in January. However, last year, both the Department of Agriculture and

Aerospace America reported that Jerry Grey, “editor emeritus of Aerospace America and the magazine’s founding publisher,” died February 4…

Reuters reports that Airbus “posted its biggest January order haul in at least 15 years.” Airbus “said it had taken orders for 296 aircraft in January, including the recently finalised order for 102 planes from Air Lease Corp as well as 100 jets from U.S. low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines.” Following cancellations, it “started the year with

Florida Today reports that “weather is currently forecasted as 80% ‘go’” for Sunday’s launch of the NASA-ESA Solar Orbiter aboard a ULA Atlas V rocket. The 45th Weather Squadron said that “the primary concern for launch is the Cumulus Cloud Rule (meaning an increase in clouds and rain showers during the launch window).” Should the mission

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michele McDonald 703.264.7542 [email protected] February 6, 2020 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is pleased to announce the winners of the 2020 Sustained Service Awards. “AIAA’s volunteers are the aerospace community’s greatest resource,” said Dan Dumbacher, AIAA executive director. “They lead by example, using their talent

The Wall Street Journal reports that Airbus has said that travel restrictions to China are hindering production at its Tianjin, China, factory. Most large plants had been ordered closed by the Chinese government until February 10, but Airbus said Wednesday that it plans to extend the closure indefinitely. The closure could cause delivery delays for Asian

The Newport News (VA) Daily Press reports that women from the National Institute of Aerospace (NIA) and AIAA are leading STEM education activities at Jones Magnet Middle School in Hampton, Virginia. The appearances are a part of the school’s “BraveHearts club,” which is “a national organization for middle school girls, aimed at increasing confidence, leadership and

Florida Today reports that the NASA-ESA Solar Orbiter is scheduled to launch “atop United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rocket no earlier than 11:03 p.m. Sunday from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 41.” If successful, the Solar Orbiter “will provide a never-before-seen global view of our sun” and “is the latest effort in what helophysicists

CNBC reports that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said that to work at SpaceX, “you need to have ‘a super hardcore work ethic, talent for building things, common sense and trustworthiness.’” Musk announced on Twitter that the company plans to hold a career day on Thursday at its Startgate Building in Boca Chica, Texas. According to Musk

The Wall Street Journal reports that according to a Federal Register filing, the FAA is developing new safety standards for UAVs. Specifically, the FAA is beginning the process of certifying UAVs as a “special class” of aircraft. Such a move would mean significant progress toward the use of UAVs in package delivery efforts. Full Story (Wall Street Journal–subscription

Aviation Today reports on a presentation given by BAE Systems Systems Engineering Manager Robert Hess at the Transformative Vertical Flight 2020 conference hosted by the Vertical Flight Society. Hess’ presentation noted that “designers and manufacturers of electric air taxis may run into issues sourcing the batteries they want at reasonable prices.” Hess “explained to Avionics

The Wall Street Journal reported a new point of contention has arisen between US and European aviation regulators over wiring in the grounded Boeing 737 MAX jet, with the European Union Aviation Safety Agency requesting that some wires be moved in order to lower the risk of short circuiting that could impede flight-control systems. The article

The Los Angeles Times reported “the next crucial step in the investigation of the helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and seven other people should occur next week, when the National Transportation Safety Board is expected to release some preliminary findings.” In the past week, NTSB investigators “have spent days at the scene”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michele McDonald 703.264.7542 [email protected] Three Honorary Fellows and 29 Fellows Selected February 3, 2020 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) has selected its Class of 2020 AIAA Fellows and Honorary Fellows. The induction ceremony for the new Fellows and Honorary Fellows will take place on 19

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michele McDonald 703.264.7542 [email protected] Black-Tie Event Honors Aerospace’s Best and Brightest February 3, 2020 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) has announced the 2020 recipients of its most prestigious awards. Presentation of these premier awards and recognition of the Institute’s newly elected Fellows and Honorary Fellows

SPACE reports that Thursday was NASA’s annual “Day of Remembrance,” when the agency memorializes “three fatal space tragedies: the Apollo 1 fire of Jan. 27, 1967, the Challenger shuttle disaster of Jan. 28, 1986 and the Columbia shuttle accident of Feb. 1, 2003.” NASA said in a statement, “NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, along with other

Aviation International News reports that Vertical Aerospace has “completed the preliminary design review for what will be its first full prototype eVTOL aircraft.” The new design is reportedly “a significant change from the Seraph technology demonstrator aircraft, with a wing added to boost range and speed.” It is scheduled to begin flight in late 2020,

Aviation International News reports that eVTOL are expected to “have a significantly lower external noise signature compared to helicopters, but that does not necessarily translate into instant public acceptance.” Juliet Page, a scientist with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Volpe National Transportation System, argued that it “is important for eVTOL manufacturers to avail themselves to

SPACE reports that NASA indicated that Voyager 2 “is recovering from a glitch, but engineers are confident that the probe will be back to normal science operations soon.” Mission scientists think that on January 25, Voyager “failed to take a quick spin that it needed to make to calibrate an instrument.” As a result, two

Spaceflight Now reports that following a delay of “more than a week” due to weather, “SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket Wednesday from Cape Canaveral with 60 more satellites for the company’s Starlink Internet network.” The launch means SpaceX is “continuing to build out a fleet of fleet of orbiting broadband relay stations that could

The AP reports that Christina Koch, the astronaut who holds “the record for the longest spaceflight by a woman,” will return “to Earth on February 6, landing in Kazakhstan with two colleagues aboard a Russian capsule.” Koch indicated on Tuesday “that taking part in the first all-female spacewalk was the highlight of her mission.” She added

Aviation International News reports that Kaman Aerospace reported on Tuesday that it “is advancing its military and commercial K-Max [uncrewed] aerial system (UAS) – an autonomously flown version of the K-Max utility helicopter.” Kaman Air Vehicle Senior Director of Business Development Romin Dasmalchi indicated that Kaman “is updating those two helicopters under a U.S. Navy

The Times of Israel reports that during last week’s World Holocaust Forum, Israel’s “cyber defense system fended off hundreds of cyberattacks targeting the country’s international airport and the planes of” world leaders attending the event. Officials from the Airports Authority Cyber Division indicated “that at least 800 distinct cyberattacks targeted Israeli aviation on Thursday while world

Aviation International News reports that SyberJet Aircraft announced Monday that it is “progressing toward amended type certification (TC) for the SJ30i SyberVision with the successful completion of aircraft control identification tests (ACID).” The certification is a part of its work to develop “a new autopilot for the light twinjet.” The autopilot is being developed “jointly”

Reuters reported that according to “people briefed on the calls,” FAA Administrator Steve Dickson “called senior U.S. airline officials on Friday and told them the agency could approve the grounded Boeing 737 MAX’s return to service before mid-year.” The calls came as an FAA statement on Friday said, “While the FAA continues to follow a

The AP reported that on Saturday, NASA’s Andrew Morgan and Italy’s Luca Parmitano conducted a spacewalk and “plugged a leak in a cosmic ray detector outside the” ISS. As a result, “the $2 billion Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer could resume its hunt for elusive antimatter and dark matter by midweek.” The spacewalk was the “fourth and final” effort

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michele McDonald 703.264.7542 [email protected] January 24, 2020 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is pleased to announce the election of two new division chiefs. Daniel T. Jensen, Rolls-Royce Corporation, was elected by the regional directors to become chief of the Regional Engagement Activities Division (READ). Jeffrey W.

Florida Today reports that SpaceX “has again delayed its next Falcon 9 launch” due to “inclement weather in the area of the Atlantic Ocean hosting the booster landing.” SpaceX said on Thursday, “Weather in the recovery area continues to be unfavorable so team is now targeting Monday, January 27 for launch of Starlink.” The move marks

Reuters reports that Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) officials are beginning their investigation into Thursday’s C-130 Hercules tanker plane crash which killed three American firefighters working to fight the Australian bushfires. ATSB Chief Commissioner Greg Hood said that the ATSB is “very much into the evidence gathering phase of the investigation” though he indicated that

CNET News reports that NASA plans to decommission the Spitzer Space Telescope on January 30. The telescope had been “unraveling the mysteries of the cosmos since its launch on Aug. 25, 2003.” The mission “lasted much longer than expected,” but as the telescope “has been drifting away from Earth,” the “distance made it too challenging to

Aviation Today reports that Uber believes that it is “right on target” in its efforts to establish its Elevate aerial rideshare service. At the Transformative Vertical Flight conference, Uber Director of Aviation Engineering Mark Moore “moved the conversation away from building and certifying the all-new class of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft and towards

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michele McDonald 703.264.7542 [email protected] January 23, 2020 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is pleased to announce the 2020 International Student Conference winners. AIAA, in partnership with Lockheed Martin Corporation, sponsors the International Student Conference at AIAA SciTech Forum each year for student members at both

The Orlando Sentinel reports that SpaceX postponed a launch of additional Starlink satellites on Tuesday afternoon “due to ‘extreme weather’ in the rocket’s recovery zone in the Atlantic Ocean, the company said.” SpaceX initially was scheduled to launch “during a launch window that opened at 11:59 a.m.” When conducted, the mission will “carry the fourth batch

FlightGlobal reports that the US Navy’s Bell Boeing CMV-22B Osprey “made its initial flight at Bell’s Amarillo Assembly Center in Texas.” The flight comes “ahead of its manufacturers’ plan to deliver the tiltrotor to the Naval Air Systems Command’s Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 21 in early 2020 for developmental testing,” according to Bell and Boeing.

SPACE reported that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk “outlined some ambitious goals for the company’s Starship Mars-colonization system during a flurry of Twitter posts on Thursday.” Starship, “Musk has said,” “will be capable of carrying up to 100 people, and a giant rocket named Super Heavy.” Both systems are intended to be reuseable – part of Musk’s

Aviation International News reported that Leonardo’s “largest remotely piloted air system (RPAS) to date, the Falco Xplorer, made its first flight on January 15.” The Xplorer “took off from the Italian air force flight test center at Trapani, Sicily, and flew for around an hour over the sea before safely returning to the air base.”

FlightGlobal reports that the US Air Force Research Laboratory’s (AFRL) X-60A “rocket recently completed test firings of its engine while on the ground at Cecil Spaceport in Jacksonville, Florida.” The X-60A is an “air-launched, single-stage rocket designed to reach hypersonic speeds so that the AFRL can routinely test hypersonic technologies.” It is being constructed by

The Independent reports that Airbus said that it has “completed the first fully automatic vision-based take-off at Toulouse-Blagnac airport.” To do so, the “plane uses image recognition technology installed on the aircraft…rather than using existing ground technology.” Airbus Test Pilot Captain Yann Beaufils said, “We moved the throttle levers to the takeoff setting and we monitored the

Reuters reports that Airbus Chief Commercial Officer Christian Scherer indicated on Wednesday that the company “sees enough demand for its wide-bodied A330neo passenger jet to keep production stable.” There has “been speculation Airbus would have to trim production of the latest version of its most profitable long-range jet” because some airlines are seen as “unlikely to