Industry News

Aviation International News reports that Airbus, “for the first time, has performed an A380 flight powered by 100 percent sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) in one of its Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines, the company said Monday. A380 test aircraft MSN 1 took off from Blagnac Airport in Toulouse, France, at 8:43 am on Friday, remaining in

CBS News reports that Blue Origin “is gearing up to launch its fourth crewed New Shepard flight this week – a 10-minute rocket-powered thrill ride to the edge of space and back carrying five wealthy space tourists and the spacecraft’s chief designer.” Liftoff is targeted for “9:30 a.m. EDT Thursday, two days later than planned

Space News reported that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) “has again delayed completion of an environmental assessment for orbital launches of SpaceX’s Starship vehicle from Texas, although it may have no effect on near-term launch plans.” The FAA “announced March 25 that it had pushed back the expected completion of the final Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA)

Aviation Today reported that Avolon and Air Greenland “will form a Working Group to examine the potential of commercial zero-emission air travel in Greenland.” Air Greenland “has also committed to a purchase or lease of electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft from Avolon; the eVTOLs will be manufactured by Vertical Aerospace, maker of the five-seater,

SPACE reports that Solar Orbiter “has snapped the closest images of the sun ever taken, revealing the finest details of our star’s outer atmosphere, the corona.” The images “were taken on March 7, when Solar Orbiter was exactly halfway between Earth and the sun, at a distance of 46 million miles (75 million kilometers) from both

The Dallas Morning News reports that regional airlines are already feeling the effect of the “long-foretold” pilot shortage, as SkyWest Airlines “cited a shortage of pilots while petitioning the government to drop service to 29 cities.” The Morning News adds that the pilot shortage “may hinder a travel industry that’s already struggling to emerge from two years

Spaceflight Now reports that NASA astronaut Raja Chari and German astronaut Matthias Maurer “floated outside the International Space Station Wednesday and installed refurbished ammonia jumpers in the lab’s cooling system to bring it back up to full efficiency, replaced a high-definition camera and made power and data connections on a European experiment platform.” Astronaut Kayla

Aviation International News reports that “Japan Aerospace (JAC) and Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) have signed an agreement with Dart Aerospace to design and certify a fire attack system for the new five-blade Airbus Helicopters H145.” KHI “is partnering with JAC to help test, certify, and install the tank with Dart on the H145.” Full Story

SPACE reports that NASA’s Ingenuity has made its 22nd Mars flight. Ingenuity “stayed aloft for 101.4 seconds and reached a maximum altitude of 33 feet (10 meters) during the sortie, which took place on Sunday.” Full Story (SPACE)

Florida Today reports that a TUI Airways Boeing 787 Dreamliner made the first transatlantic flight from Manchester, United Kingdom, to Melbourne Orlando International Airport (MLB) on March 22. The aircraft “brought TUI’s first batch of European holiday passengers from Manchester, England, to the Space Coast. Long anticipated by Brevard County officials, the vacation-package company is

Space News reports that SpaceX now has 250,000 subscribers “for its Starlink satellite broadband service as it looks to move into new markets like aviation.” SpaceX is manufacturing “close to eight satellites a day,” according to SpaceX Starlink Commercial Sales VP Jonathan Hofeller. Hofeller also said, “Connectivity on airplanes is something we think is ripe for

Aviation Week reports that the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) has “designated the Boeing Airpower Teaming System, or Loyal Wingman, as the MQ-28A Ghost Bat. The naming is another milestone for the program as it continues development and testing.” Full Story (Aviation Week)

Space News reported that SpaceX “set records for the reuse of its Falcon 9 booster and the mass that rocket placed into orbit March 19 with the latest launch of Starlink satellites.” The Falcon 9 “lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 12:42 a.m. Eastern” and placed

Aviation Today reported that Joby Aviation “took another step towards certification of its fully electric aircraft in completing its first Systems Review and Compliance Review and earning Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval.” Full Story (Aviation Today)

Spaceflight Now reports that SpaceX “raised a veteran Falcon 9 booster vertical on a launch pad at Cape Canaveral late Thursday, ready for a record-setting 12th mission Friday night with 53 more Starlink internet satellites.” The launch “will mark the 12th flight of a Falcon 9 booster that debuted in March 2019 with the unpiloted

Reuters reports that Delta Air Lines plans to help Airbus in its effort to develop a hydrogen-powered passenger aircraft. Delta highlighted that the partnership does not entail any financial investment on its part. Airbus research and technology VP Amanda Simpson stated that the company has plans to produce a small “ZEROe” passenger aircraft powered by

BBC News reports that NASA released the first properly focused image from the James Webb Space Telescope. NASA engineer Lee Feinberg said they have now managed to fully focus the observatory on a test star, and the pin-sharp performance is even better than expected. However, NASA cautioned that a lot of work still remains before the

Air Force Times reports that a newly revealed Pentagon weapons tester’s report illustrates multiple issues with the F-35 in 2021, particularly in areas of availability rates and new software problems. The F-35 fleet “averaged 61% availability, below its target of 65%,” throughout 2021. Out of the “average 39% unavailable at any given time, 15% were down

Space News reports that Astra’s Rocket 3.3 returned to flight Tuesday “at 12:22 p.m. Eastern from Pacific Spaceport Complex – Alaska on Kodiak Island.” The mission carried NearSpace Launch’s EyeStar-S3 satellite, the Portland State Aerospace Society’s OreSat0, and a payload from an undisclosed third customer. Full Story (Space News)

The Dallas Morning News  reports that Southwest Airlines “and other airlines are cutting thousands of spring flights from schedules because of serious headwinds from high fuel prices, staffing challenges and other ongoing supply chain constraints.” The airline has already “axed 14,500 flights from its March through May schedule,” and “on Tuesday cited ‘continuing challenges with available

CNN reports that Pete Davidson “will become the latest celebrity to fly to space with Jeff Bezos’ rocket company, Blue Origin, in a brief, suborbital flight slated for later this month.” Davidson and five other customers will launch into space on a New Shepard rocket. The launch “is slated for March 23 at 8:30 am CT.”

Aviation Week reports that two US Air Force pilots “have become the first to conduct crewed test flights of an electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft under the service’s Agility Prime program.” The two pilots flew “Beta Technologies’ Alia prototype on March 9 from Plattsburgh International Airport, New York.” Full Story (Aviation Week)

Space News reported that China “is planning to open its space station to commercial missions and activities, according to a senior human spaceflight program official.” Chinese human spaceflight program Chief Designer Zhou Jianping said, “When our space station is completed and running, we will actively encourage the private sector to engage in space through various ways.”

CNN reported, “Sanctions imposed by the United States and the European Union mean that the world’s two major aircraft makers, Boeing (BA) and Airbus (EADSF), are no longer able to supply spare parts or provide maintenance support for Russian airlines,” which is also “true of jet engine makers.” One expert said the result will be

Space News reports that the Soyuz rocket’s “sudden exit from the global stage has left more than a dozen non-Russian satellite missions without clear paths to orbit.” Phil Smith, a BryceTech analyst, “said the sudden, indefinite removal of Soyuz from the market ‘puts some customers in a lurch.’ And while ‘options exist’ thanks to ‘new

Aviation International News reports that Gulfstream “has launched an upgrade to the G280 and pledged its commitment to the 10-year-old super-midsize business jet program.” Full Story (Aviation International News)

Aviation Week reports that NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter “has logged 20 flights as it has graduated to become a reconnaissance asset for the Perseverance rover.” Full Story (Aviation Week)

Aviation International News reports that the Airbus Helicopters H160 is to enter serial-production seven years “after its unveiling.” Airbus Helicopters saw “firm orders for 52 H160s last year and handed over the first one to Japan’s All Nippon Helicopter in December.” The H160 “was headed to the U.S. ahead of its long-awaited certification by the FAA

SPACE reports that NASA’s Perseverance rover “drilled into another Martian rock and socked away the resulting core, mission team members announced via Twitter” Tuesday. The sample is the seventh collected by Perseverance on Mars thus far. Perseverance is to collect another rock sample from the Jezero Crater before heading on to the Jezero river delta. Full

Reuters reports that The Boeing Company said it delivered 20 of its 737 MAX aircraft and two freighters to customers in February, indicating rebounding travel and pandemic-era cargo demand, but its 787 Dreamliner freeze continued. The Boeing 737 MAX and the 787 Dreamliner are crucial to the company’s ability to recover from the pandemic and catch

SPACE reports that teams at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) are preparing for the March 17 rollout of the SLS-Orion rocket and spacecraft for the Artemis 1 mission. Artemis 1 “will send an Orion spacecraft around the moon, to make sure both SLS and Orion are ready for crewed missions.” Full Story (SPACE)

Aviation International News reports that Sikorsky Innovations Director Igor Cherepinsky “sees Matrix as a game-changer for high-risk civil missions, including night-time aerial firefighting and over-water search and rescue (SAR).” Sikorsky is currently “working with the FAA to certify the system, which uses a plethora of onboard sensors, lidar, and cameras mated to proprietary hardware and software.

Space News reported that, citing Starlink jamming “near conflict areas,” Elon Musk said that SpaceX will be “reprioritzed to cyber defence & overcoming signal jamming” at the expense of “slight delays” in Starship and Starlink V2. Musk said that the company was shifting its resources in response to jamming of terminals, presumably in Ukraine. A recent

Fortune reports that international sanctions threaten the rollout of Irkut Corp.’s MC-21 jetliner, “due to commence deliveries to Russian airlines this year.” The MC-21 “is the first full-size aircraft designed in Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union more than three decades ago” and features composite wings and a passenger capacity of 211 people. The

Aviation Week reports that the first B-21 Raider “test aircraft has started ground evaluations, and the sixth example of the next-generation bomber has started production.” The announcement was made by the US Air Force at the Air Force Association’s Air Warfare Symposium on Thursday. Full Story (Aviation Week)

Florida Today reports that a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket “launched from Florida Thursday morning, sending the company’s newest batch of Starlink internet satellites to low-Earth orbit and completing the company’s first launch of March.” SpaceX’s ninth Falcon 9 launch “in as many weeks blasted off at 9:25 a.m. EST from pad 39A at Kennedy Space

Space News reports that a spent rocket upper stage “from China’s 2014 Chang’e-5 T1 mission thought set to impact the moon did not reenter the atmosphere as previously stated, according to U.S. Space Command.” The rocket stage has been “identified by astronomers and academics tracking deep space objects as most likely to be the object

Aviation International News reports that Russia’s business aviation industry “is on the verge of collapse due to the EU and U.S. closing their airspace to all aircraft owned by Russians in retaliation for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.” Industry analysts predict this will “lead to the decline of business aviation traffic in Russia by almost 85 percent

Aviation International News reports that Cirrus Aircraft president Zean Nielsen said demand for personal aviation aircraft is at an all-time high. At the Cirrus Aircraft CX 2022 event in Knoxville, Tennessee, on January 11, Nielsen “cited a company backlog of about 700 SR series single-engine piston aircraft and ‘several hundred’ SF50 Vision Jets even as

The Washington Post reports on Tuesday, the United States launched “its latest and greatest weather satellite, which will provide constant monitoring over the Western Hemisphere and help track fires, hurricanes, lightning, smoke plumes, coastal fog, landslides, atmospheric rivers, dust storms and more.” Some instruments will also “stare at the sun, providing data on incoming space weather

CNET News reports Elon Musk replied to Roscosmos head Dmitry Rogozin’s threat to withdraw Russian support for the International Space Station (ISS) by sharing the SpaceX logo on Twitter. Russian spacecraft “attached to the Russian segment of the ISS are used to adjust the flying laboratory’s path and literally help keep it high enough in

Aviation Week reports that the US Air Force Special Operations Command is preparing “to demonstrate a new amphibious capability for the Lockheed Martin C-130J later this year.” Full Story (Aviation Week)

Aviation Week reported that engine maintenance activity “continues to increase as airlines ramp up flying and return more aircraft to service in response to rising passenger demand, with both fourth-quarter (Q4) 2021 and early 2022 figures from some key stakeholders highlighting continued recovery.” Full Story (Aviation Week)

SPACE reports that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk “said his space company’s Starlink satellite internet service is available in Ukraine and more terminals to use it are on the way.” Musk “made the statement on Twitter Saturday (Feb. 26) after being asked by a Ukrainian government official if SpaceX could provide more Starlink services to the country

SPACE reports an April launch is “no longer possible for Artemis 1, which will send an uncrewed Orion spacecraft around the moon using a huge Space Launch System (SLS) megarocket, agency officials said today (Feb. 24). And May could be difficult to hit as well.” Tom Whitmeyer, deputy associate administrator for exploration systems development at

Aviation Week reports that a US Air Force Boeing KC-46A from North Carolina “linked up with two F-35As to fuel the fighters on the long flight from the F-35As’ base in Guam to Singapore, where the new U.S. Air Force aircraft would be on public display at one of the world’s major air shows.” Full Story

Space News reports that a rocket stage “expected to impact the moon is still most likely to belong to China’s 2014 moon mission, despite a denial from the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.” Independent spectral analysis “by students at the University of Arizona also adds to the evidence that the object’s identity most likely belongs

Aviation Week reports that the US Air Force “has retired the first of 16 Northrop Grumman E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (J-Stars) surveillance aircraft.” Full Story (Aviation Week)

Space News reports that Virgin Galactic executives “said Feb. 22 that they remain on schedule to begin commercial human suborbital missions before the end of the year but acknowledged it will take several years for the company to become profitable.” Virgin Galactic Chief Executive Michael Colglazier said, “We remain on track and on schedule to

Aviation International News reports that the estimated valuation of preowned business jets “is up 4 percent from February 2021.” The aircraft valuation “is based on average selling price adjusted for typical premiums and/or discounts, age of aircraft, upgrades, engine plans, and usage, providing an estimate for what the sales price of an aircraft should be.” Asking