Aviation International News reports, “Joby Aviation has completed several piloted test flights with its eVTOL aircraft prototype, covering full transition from vertical to cruise flight and back again. On April 29, the company reported that the first such flight happened a week ago on April 22 and that since then, multiple transition flights have been made with three different pilots at the controls.”
Full Story (Aviation International News)
Tag: 2025
Vega-C Rocket Launches European Forest-Monitoring Satellite from South America
SPACE reports, “A European forest-monitoring satellite headed toward orbit from South America early Tuesday morning (April 29). The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Biomass spacecraft lifted off atop a Vega-C rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana on Tuesday at 5:15 a.m. EDT (0915 GMT; 6:15 a.m. local time in Korea). Arianespace’s stream began at 4:55 a.m. EDT (0855 GMT), and the launch can now be watched on demand.”
Full Story (SPACE)
Video
Flight VV26 | Biomass | Vega C (Launch occurs at 22:45)
(Arianespace; YouTube)
SpaceX Launches 250th Starlink Satellite Mission on Falcon 9
SPACE reports SpaceX launched its 250th dedicated Starlink mission on Sunday night (April 27), sending 23 of the broadband satellites to low Earth orbit. Liftoff took place “from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Sunday at 10:09 p.m. EDT (0209 GMT on Monday, April 28). It was the 250th time SpaceX had sent a batch of Starlink craft skyward, the company noted via X shortly after launch.”
Full Story (SPACE)
Video
SpaceX launches dedicated Starlink mission for 250th time (Launch occurs at 00:13)
(VideoFromSpace; YouTube)
European Study Shines New Light on Persistent Helicopter Safety Issue
Flight Global reports, “A European study into Vortex Ring State (VRS) – one of the helicopter industry’s most pernicious and persistent safety risks – has concluded there are only minor differences between the effectiveness of two different recovery techniques.”
Full Story (Flight Global)
SpaceX Marks 300th Orbital Flight from Cape Canaveral’s Pad 40 with Launch of Bandwagon-3 Mission
Spaceflight Now reports, “SpaceX completed its third Falcon 9 rocket launch in less than 48 hours with a rideshare mission carrying payloads to a mid-inclination orbit. Liftoff of the Bandwagon-3 mission happened at 8:48 p.m. EDT (0048 UTC) from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. It was the 245th orbital launch for SpaceX from SLC-40 and the 300th total orbital flight from this pad … Update 9:38 p.m. EDT: The Falcon 9 first stage booster successfully landed at Landing Zone 2.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)
Video
Launch of SpaceX Bandwagon-3 ride-share mission (Launch occurs at 59:55)
(Spaceflight Now; YouTube)
SpaceX Launches 32nd Space Station Resupply Mission for NASA
Spaceflight Now reports, “SpaceX launched an uncrewed Cargo Dragon to the International Space Station early Monday on a resupply mission with increased importance after a transportation mishap derailed a flight by another U.S. cargo ship. Liftoff from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center happened on Monday, April 21, at 4:15 a.m. EDT (0815 UTC).”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)
Video
SpaceX Space Station Cargo Launch (Launch occurs at 59:44)
(Spaceflight Now; YouTube)
NASA’s Deep Space Network to Add New Dish in Australia to Improve Communications with Spacecraft
SPACE reports that NASA’s Deep Space Network is getting a new dish. This one will be at the DSN facility in Canberra, Australia. “The new dish, Deep Space Station 33, will be a 112-foot-wide (34 meters) multifrequency beam-waveguide antenna (BWG), according to the NASA statement.”
Full Story (SPACE)
SkyDrive Flies Air Taxi Prototype in Osaka
Aviation International News reports that on April 9, SkyDrive’s three-seat SD-05 eVTOL aircraft prototype made its first public demonstration flights at the World Expo 2025 event in Osaka, Japan. “ During the flight, which lasted about four minutes, the remotely piloted and highly automated aircraft reached an altitude of 5 meters, according to SkyDrive.”
Full Story (Aviation International News)
Video
Public Flight of SKYDRIVE Model SD-05
(SkyDrive, Inc; YouTube)
SpaceX Set to Launch Next Dragon Cargo Ship for NASA on April 21
SPACE reports, “NASA’s next special delivery to the International Space Station has a launch date, but it’s going to be one for early-birds. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch an uncrewed Dragon cargo ship packed with tons of supplies on Monday, April 21, from the historic Pad 39A of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Liftoff is set for 4:15 a.m. EDT (0815 GMT), making it a predawn launch.”
Full Story (SPACE)
SpaceX Astronauts Splash Down in Pacific for First Time
The New York Times reports that four private astronauts ended a mission in a SpaceX vehicle on Friday by splashing down in the Pacific Ocean, marking a first for the company. “The Fram2 mission had circled the Earth for four days in a north-south orbit. The journey was the first time people have been able to look down directly at the North and South Poles from orbit.”
Full Story (New York Times – Subscription Publication)
Video
Fram2 Astronauts Launch on Polar Orbit Mission (Splashdown occurs at 08:12)
(VideoFromSpace; YouTube)