Tag: Aerospace

SpaceX Sets New Launch Record at Vandenberg with Thursday’s Falcon 9 Launch

Spaceflight Now reports, “SpaceX launched its latest batch of 21 Starlink satellites on a Thursday night Falcon 9 launch from California. The Falcon 9 rocket launch set a new record for Vandenberg Space Force Base, marking the first time that 31 orbital missions have taken off in a calendar year. Thirty of those launches were from SpaceX and one was from Firefly Aerospace.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)

 

Video

A SpaceX Falcon 9 launches from Vandenberg Space Force Base, CA (Launch at 27:21)
(Spaceflight Now; YouTube)

Heart Aerospace Shows Off Full-Scale Demonstrator for First Time

Flying Magazine reports, “Swedish hybrid-electric aircraft manufacturer Heart Aerospace unveiled Wednesday a 30-seat demonstrator dubbed Heart Experimental 1, or Heart X1. The aircraft—the company’s first full-scale demonstrator of its ES-30 aircraft under development—will serve as a testing platform and marks a ‘major milestone’ for development of the regional airplane set to make its fully electric first flight in the second quarter of next year, the company said.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)

SpaceX Polaris Astronauts Become First Private Citizens to Complete Spacewalk

The Washington Post reports, “Jared Isaacman performed the first spacewalk by a private citizen early Thursday, with a live broadcast that showed him popping his head and torso out of the hatch of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule and performing a series of maneuvers near the capsule. He was followed by Sarah Gillis, a SpaceX engineer who is part of the four-person, all-civilian crew and also floated outside the spacecraft while tethered and holding on to handrails. The spacewalk was originally scheduled for 2:23 a.m. Eastern time Thursday but was pushed back to just before 7, when Isaacman exited the hatch. Isaacman and Gillis spent several minutes each outside the capsule.”
Full Story (Washington Post)

Vertical Aerospace Completes VX4 Phase One Testing

Reuters reports, “UK-based Vertical Aerospace has completed the first phase of piloted testing of a prototype of its air-taxi, VX4, it said on Thursday, sending the company’s shares up 3.9% in U.S. premarket trading. The VX4 has 1,500 pre-orders worth $6 billion from companies including Virgin Atlantic, American Airlines and Japan Airlines. The phase one testing included multiple piloted tethered flights and ground runs. It completed 70 individual test points to validate its safety in the real-world flight scenarios.”
Full Story (Reuters)

SpaceX Falcon 9 Launches Payload for AST SpaceMobile, Lands Booster

SPACE reports, “AST SpaceMobile’s first five commercial satellites have reached orbit. The huge spacecraft, called BlueBirds, lifted off today (Sept. 12) at 4:52 a.m. EDT (0852 GMT) atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. … Each BlueBird sports a communications antenna that covers 693 square feet (64 square meters) when unfolded — the largest such array ever deployed by a commercial spacecraft.”
Full Story (SPACE)

 

Video

SpaceX launches Polaris Dawn crew on first private spacewalk mission (Launch at 00:33 second mark)
(VideoFromSpace; YouTube)

FAA Says Agency Must Ensure Adequate Safety Measures Before 737 Max Production Can Expand

Reuters reports, “The head of the Federal Aviation Administration said Tuesday the agency must ensure the planemaker’s safety processes are adequate before it will lift its 737 MAX production cap. FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said he raised the issue with Boeing’s new chief executive Kelly Ortberg and wants to ensure the planemaker follows through on its quality turnaround plan.”
Full Story (Reuters)

Polaris Dawn Crew Achieve Record High Orbit Above Earth

The New York Times reports, “After launching early on Tuesday, the billionaire Jared Isaacman and his crew traveled to altitudes not visited by any astronaut since the Apollo moon missions of the 1960s and ’70s. … Two of them, Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon, have now gone farther from the planet than any other women ever.”
Full Story (New York Times – Subscription Publication)

Joby Aviation Submits Application for Air Taxi Certificate in UAE

Aerotime reports, “Joby Aviation is moving forward with its plans to launch commercial eVTOL operations in the Middle East. On September 9, 2024, the Californian company announced that it has submitted an application to aviation authorities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to become certified as an air taxi operator. The announcement was made during the Advanced Air Mobility Symposium, organized by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), which is taking place in Montréal, Québec, Canada, between September 9-12, 2024.”
Full Story (Aerotime)

SpaceX Falcon 9 Launches Polaris Dawn Mission from Florida

The New York Times reports, “At 5:23 a.m. Eastern time, a Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Less than 15 minutes later, the crew of four astronauts inside the Crew Dragon capsule — that will be their home for the next five days — were in orbit. The Polaris Dawn mission will mark some milestones for private spaceflight — the first spacewalk conducted by nonprofessional astronauts, and the farthest journey from Earth by anyone since NASA’s moon landings more than 50 years ago.”
Full Story (New York Times – Subscription Publication)

 

Video

SpaceX launches Polaris Dawn crew on first private spacewalk mission (Launch at 00:33 second mark)
(VideoFromSpace; YouTube)

Boeing Starliner’s Future Is Unclear After Returning Without Astronauts

The New York Times reports that Boeing’s Starliner “has finally come home, but the two NASA astronauts who traveled in it to the International Space Station in June remain in orbit. Because of problems with Starliner’s propulsion system during its approach to the space station in June, NASA officials decided not to put the astronauts, Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, on Starliner for the return trip. They will spend an additional five months on the space station as part of the crew before coming back to Earth around February in a spacecraft built and managed by SpaceX.”
Full Story (New York Times – Subscription Publication)
Full Story (NYT via Yahoo News)