Military Aerospace reports, “Archer Aviation Inc. in Salinas, Calif., announced that its Midnight aircraft completed its highest altitude flight to date, reaching 7,000 feet as part of ongoing envelope expansion testing.”
Full Story (Military Aerospace)
Tag: Achieves
Airbus’ Racer Rotorcraft Achieves Speed Target
Aviation Week reports, “Airbus Helicopters has achieved its speed target with its Racer compound rotorcraft, successfully flying the experimental aircraft at 240 kt. (276 mph) in April. The aircraft reached the speed with power margin to spare, test pilots say, and after only 25 flying hours—one-eighth of the flying hours that have been “justified” for the flight-test program—which points to the maturity of the aircraft’s design.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)
U.S. Navy’s T-54A Trainer Achieves IOC
Aviation Week reports, “The U.S. Navy’s new multi-engine trainer reached initial operational capability (IOC) in May, the service announced June 9. The Textron T-54A Merlin II is replacing the aging T-44C Pegasus to provide Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and allied training for multi-engine platforms such as the P-8A, E-2D and C-130. The service has received 15 of the aircraft so far, with plans to buy up to 64 with deliveries running through 2026. The T-54A is a modified King Air 260.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)
Horizon Aircraft Achieves Milestone with X7 eVTOL Forward Flight
Aerotime reports, “Canadian-based Horizon Aircraft, an advanced aerospace engineering company which is currently developing what will become one of the world’s first hybrid eVTOL aircraft, announced on May 15, 2025, that the large-scale test prototype of its Cavorite X7 aircraft has achieved its first full-wing transition, successfully making the transition from vertical to forward flight – a major milestone in the development of any VTOL (Vertical Take-off and Landing) aircraft.”
Full Story (Aerotime)
Video
Horizon Aircraft’s Cavorite X7 A
(Techno Thunder; YouTube)
General Atomics Gray Eagle STOL Performs First Ship-to-Land Flight
Unmanned Systems Technology reports, “General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), in collaboration with South Korea’s Hanwha Aerospace, has achieved a significant milestone with the Gray Eagle STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS). On November 12, 2024, the Gray Eagle STOL successfully launched from the South Korean Navy’s amphibious landing ship Dokdo and completed its flight with a smooth landing at Pohang Navy Airfield.”
Full Story (Unmanned Systems Technology)
Piper M700 Fury Attains Type Certification in Canada
Flying Magazine reports, “Piper Aircraft’s M700 Fury has achieved type certification from Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA)—a validation that also includes flight into known icing (FIKI) approval. The first delivery of the single-engine turboprop into Canada is scheduled for this quarter, with additional deliveries following certification in Europe, Brazil, and the U.K., the company said Wednesday.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)
Video
Piper Introduces the M700 Fury
(Piper Aircraft, Inc.; YouTube)
Gulfstream G700 Achieves FAA Certification
Flying Magazine reports, “Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. has obtained FAA type certification for the G700, the Savannah, Georgia-based company announced Friday. The milestone paves the way for deliveries of the long-awaited business jet.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)
F-35 Achieves Long-Delayed Full-Rate Production Milestone
Aviation Week reports, “The Lockheed Martin F-35 has been approved for full-rate production by the U.S. Defense Department in a long-delayed decision that comes after the program has delivered more than 990 aircraft globally.” The aircraft is now cleared “to advance toward peak production levels.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)
NASA’s Psyche Probe Achieves First Light Transmission
Aviation Week reported that NASA recently “conducted a test of laser communications capabilities with a ‘first light’ transmission from the Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) experiment aboard the Psyche mission spacecraft.”
Full Story (Aviation Week – subscription publication)