Tag: August 2024

Dan Dumbacher Recognized with Allyship Award

AIAA CEO Dan Dumbacher is being recognized by Women in Aerospace with their 2024 Allyship Award. This honor is presented to an individual ‘who actively promotes and aspires to advance a culture of inclusion for women through purposeful, positive and intentional efforts that benefit women in the aerospace community’.  We are extremely proud of Dan and his ongoing efforts to advance women in the aerospace community. Congratulations Dan! The award will be presented at the WIA’s 39th Annual Awards Dinner and Ceremony in Arlington, Virginia, on 10 October.
Full Story (WIA)

Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus Cargo Freighter Arrives at ISS

SPACE reports, “Northrop Grumman’s robotic Cygnus freighter reached the International Space Station (ISS) early Tuesday morning (Aug. 6), carrying about 4 tons of supplies to the orbiting lab. The Cygnus, which launched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Sunday (Aug. 4), was captured by the station’s robotic arm on Tuesday at 3:11 a.m. (0711 GMT), as the duo were flying over the South Atlantic Ocean.”
Full Story (SPACE)

Boeing’s 777-9 Certification Program Paused to Address Engine Component Crack

Aviation Week reports, “Cracks in engine attachment components that have stalled Boeing’s 777-9 certification program were found in a fourth test aircraft that has not flown in nearly three years, Aviation Week has learned. The latest discovery, on WH004, is expected to help narrow down Boeing’s investigation into the failures in the thrust links—assemblies that connect the airframe with the aircraft’s GE Aerospace GE9X engines.
Full Story (Aviation Week)

Boeing’s 777-9 Certification Program Paused to Address Engine Component Cracks

Aviation Week reports, “Cracks in engine attachment components that have stalled Boeing’s 777-9 certification program were found in a fourth test aircraft that has not flown in nearly three years, Aviation Week has learned. The latest discovery, on WH004, is expected to help narrow down Boeing’s investigation into the failures in the thrust links—assemblies that connect the airframe with the aircraft’s GE Aerospace GE9X engines.
Full Story (Aviation Week)

Boeing Boosts Its Forecast for China’s Commercial Jet Fleet Demand

MarketWatch reports, “China will more than double its commercial airplane fleet by 2043, says Boeing, thanks to the expansion of the aviation industry to meet growing passenger travel and cargo demand. The U.S. plane maker said Tuesday in its annual 20-year forecast that China will need 8,830 new commercial airplanes through 2043, up from its 8,560…”
Full Story (MarketWatch)

SpaceX Falcon 9 Booster Explodes on Droneship, Ending String of 267 Successful Landings

Spaceflight Now reports, “Update 5:20 a.m. EDT: SpaceX is scrubbing the Starlink 9-5 launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base to allow more time to review the data from the B1062 landing failure. For the first time in more than three years, SpaceX lost one of its reusable Falcon 9 boosters during a landing attempt amid the Starlink 8-6 mission on Wednesday morning. As it was touching down on the droneship, ‘A Shortfall of Gravitas,’ a green flash could be seen around the Merlin engines before the engine section was engulfed in flames and the booster toppled over and exploded.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)

 

Video

SpaceX Falcon 9 Booster Explodes on Droneship (1:16:36 mark)
(Spaceflight Now; YouTube)

NASA Issues RFI on Potential VIPER Partnerships

Space News reports, “NASA is requesting concepts from companies and organizations willing to take over a robotic lunar rover that the agency announced last month it would cancel even through it is nearly complete. NASA issued a request for information (RFI) Aug. 9 for the operation of the Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) spacecraft. NASA announced July 17 it planned to cancel the rover, citing development delays and cost overruns amid broader budget pressures in the agency’s science programs.”
Full Story (Space News)

NASA Shuts Down NEOWISE Spacecraft, Closing More than a Decade of Asteroid Observations

Spaceflight Now reports, “A spacecraft that helped bolster planetary defense is now at the end of its operational mission. On Thursday, engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California sent the Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) spacecraft into its final hibernation mode by shutting off its transmitter. The command, issued from the Earth Orbiting Missions Operations Center at JPL, brought to an end more than a decade of observations of comets and asteroids that helped further the understanding of celestial bodies that could potentially pose a threat to Earth.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)

Beta Granted FAA Approval to Begin eVTOL Pilot Training

Flying Magazine reports, “Beta will train additional company and FAA personnel using dual controls on its flagship electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) Alia 250. The company on Wednesday said the agency granted it a letter of authorization (LOA) to start dual seat pilot training of “manufacturer and FAA personnel,” such as the aviation safety inspector who will ultimately help certify the aircraft for commercial service.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)

First MH-139A Grey Wolf Delivered to US Air Force

Defense News reports, “Boeing announced on Monday it has delivered the first production MH-139A Grey Wolf helicopter to the U.S. Air Force.” Boeing’s MH-139A Grey Wolf is slated to conduct security patrols at nuclear missile fields, but plans to slash the fleet have triggered cost overruns. “The helicopter will be stationed at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana, Boeing said.”
Full Story (Defense News)

U.S. Army’s Future Long-Range Tiltrotor Shifts to Next Development Phase

Defense News reports, “The U.S. Army’s future long-range aircraft is moving out of technology development and into the critical engineering and manufacturing development phase, the service announced Friday. The Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft program, or FLRAA, is estimated to be worth approximately $70 billion across its lifespan, including foreign military sales, and is set to replace roughly 2,000 Black Hawk utility helicopters.”
Full Story (Defense News)

Cygnus Spacecraft Experiences Glitches After Launch

Space News reports, “A Falcon 9 launched a Northrop Grumman Cygnus cargo spacecraft to the International Space Station Aug. 4, but the spacecraft suffered problems that have delayed maneuvers needed to reach the station. The launch appeared to go as planned, with the Cygnus spacecraft separating from the Falcon’s upper stage in low Earth orbit nearly 15 minutes after liftoff.”
Full Story (Space News)

NASA On Track for August Launch of Crew-9

Space News reports, “NASA is pressing ahead with a mid-August launch of the next Crew Dragon mission while delaying the first operational flight of Starliner. At a July 26 briefing, NASA officials said they were targeting no earlier than Aug. 18 for the launch of the Crew-9 mission to the International Space Station. That date had been in question after an upper stage anomaly on a Falcon 9 Starlink launch that grounded the rocket for 15 days.”
Full Story (Space News)

SpaceX Falcon 9 Launches 22 Starlink Satellites from Cape Canaveral

Spaceflight Now reports SpaceX has launched 22 more Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit. Liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station took place “at 9:20 a.m. EDT (1320 UTC), which was the end of a four-hour launch window. The Starlink 10-5 mission was the 57th launch of the internet enabling satellites so far in 2024.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)

 

Video

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches 22 Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveral
(Spaceflight Now; YouTube)