Breaking Defense reports, “Defense tech startup Anduril’s prototype bid for the Air Force’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft program achieved its first flight, the service announced [Friday]. The YFQ-44A drone flew ‘at a California test location’ at an undisclosed time today, the Air Force said in a press release. The drone is the second to reach the flight testing stage for the Air Force’s drone wingman program, following General Atomics’s YFQ-42A that took off for the first time in August.”
Full Story (Breaking Defense)
Tag: November 2025
Blue Origin Successfully Test-Fires New Glenn Rocket Engines at Cape Canaveral
Ars Technica reports, “The road to the second flight of Blue Origin’s heavy-lifting New Glenn rocket got a lot clearer Thursday night with a success test-firing of the launcher’s seven main engines on a launch pad at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. Standing on a seaside launch pad, the New Glenn rocket ignited its seven BE-4 main engines at 9:59 pm EDT Thursday (01:59 UTC Friday). The engines burned for 38 seconds while the rocket remained firmly on the ground, according to a social media post by Blue Origin.”
Full Story (Ars Technica)
Toronto Metropolitan University Student Branch: Building a Professional Community
Embraer Reports Record Q3 2025 Revenue, Backlog at $31.3B
Aerotime reports, “Embraer reported an all-time high third-quarter revenue of $2.0 billion in Q3 2025, up 18% year-on-year, driven by strong growth in its Commercial Aviation and Defense & Security segments. The Brazilian manufacturer delivered 62 aircraft during the quarter (20 commercial jets, 41 executive jets, and one KC-390 Millennium), marking a 5% year-on-year increase.”
Full Story (Aerotime)
ISS Above and Beyond – 4K Earth Views
“Athena” Plan Lays Out New Blueprint for Remaking NASA
Ars Technica reports, “In recent weeks, copies of an intriguing policy document have started to spread among space lobbyists on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. The document bears the title ‘Athena,’ and it purports to summarize the actions that private astronaut Jared Isaacman would have taken, were his nomination to become NASA administrator confirmed. The 62-page plan is notable both for the ideas to remake NASA that it espouses as well as the manner in which it has been leaked to the space community.”
Full Story (Ars Technica)
AI Shifts the Paradigm of Aerospace Structural Modeling
From the Institute
Artificial intelligence (AI) can and should be a practical partner in changing the way aerospace structural modeling is accomplished, remarked Wenbin Yu. While physics-based models remain essential, AI can accelerate computation, fill knowledge gaps, integrate workflows, and make advanced simulation tools accessible to more engineers, he added, describing this new paradigm in detail during an AIAA JournalKeynote Seminar Series webinar.
Bombardier Announces Its Global 8000 Sets Cabin Altitude Record
Flying Magazine reports, “Bombardier announced Tuesday that its new Global 8000 now offers the lowest cabin altitude of any business jet in production. The Canadian aerospace manufacturer said the Global 8000 has a cabin altitude of 2,691 feet while flying at 41,000 feet.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)
AIAA Engages Future Space Leaders at SpaceVision 2025
FROM THE INSTITUTE
SpaceVision, hosted by Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS), took place at the University of Washington in Seattle, 6–8 November, and brought together more than 350 university students from across the country. AIAA CEO Clay Mowry participated in two back-to-back panels on 7 November, highlighting both the future of space exploration and practical guidance for emerging professionals.
SpaceX Launches Another Batch of Starlink Satellites from Vandenberg on New Falcon 9
Spaceflight Now reports, “SpaceX launched a brand new Falcon 9 booster on a mission from California to deploy another batch of satellites for the company’s Starlink internet service. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, occurred for 12:48 a.m. PST (3:48 a.m. EST / 0848 UTC).”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)
Video
SpaceX launches a new Falcon 9 rocket from California (Launch ocurrs at the 29:03 mark).
Spaceflight Now; YouTube
AIAA Fellow Hauck Died in November 2025
FROM THE INSTITUTE
Former NASA astronaut Rick Hauck, who flew on three Space Shuttle missions, including the Return to Flight in 1988, died on 8 November. He was 84 years old.
Navy and Marines Corps Set to Install Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance Systems in Boeing F/A-18s
Aviation Week reports, “The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, along with two partner operators, are set to install automatic ground collision avoidance systems in Boeing F/A-18 fleets—admitting that the technology could have prevented several fatal crashes. Both the legacy F/A-18 Hornet fleet in the U.S. Marine Corps and Royal Canadian Air Force and the F/A-18E/Fs and EA-18G Growlers in the U.S. Navy and Royal Australian Air Force passed major milestones in the process in November.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)
Boeing Starliner’s Next Flight Allowed to Carry Cargo Only
Ars Technica reports, “The US space agency ended months of speculation about the next flight of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, confirming Monday that the vehicle will carry only cargo to the International Space Station. NASA and Boeing are now targeting no earlier than April 2026 to fly the uncrewed Starliner-1 mission, the space agency said. Launching by next April will require completion of rigorous test, certification, and mission readiness activities, NASA added in a statement.”
Full Story (Ars Technica)
NASA’s Perseverance Rover May Have Discovered its First Meteorite on Mars
SPACE reports, “NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover has found a possible meteorite on the surface of the Red Planet. Perseverance spotted an unusual “sculpted, high-standing” rock nestled among “low-lying, flat and fragmented surrounding rocks”, which got the attention of scientists right away.”
Full Story (SPACE)
DARPA Announces 2026 X-plane Competition for New Uncrewed Cargo Drone
Flight Global reports, “The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) plans to launch the Lift Challenge in 2026, seeking novel designs for uncrewed aircraft that can carry payloads more than four times their own weight.”
Eastern Range Hosts 100th Orbital Launch of the Year
Aviation Week reports, “Less than a decade ago, the country’s primary spaceport was working on modernizing processes and equipment to support 48 rocket launches a year—more than double the annual flight rate at the time. This week, the Eastern Range hosts its 100th orbital launch of the year, with another 20-30 remaining on the 2025 flight manifest.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)
AIAA Announces Candidates for the 2026 Election
FROM THE INSTITUTE
The Council Nominating Committee has selected candidates for next year’s openings on the AIAA Council of Directors. Council Nominating Committee Chair Laura Richard and AIAA Governance and Executive Operations Administrator Susan Silva confirmed the names of the candidates who will appear on the 2026 ballot.
Full Story (Aerospace America)
2025 AIAA Best Professional and Student Papers
FROM THE INSTITUTE
AIAA technical committees (TCs) and integration and outreach committees (IOCs) have selected the best professional and student technical papers presented at recent AIAA forums. With a standard award criteria and selection process from the respective committees, the following technical papers were selected as the “best,” and thereby were presented with a Certificate of Merit. The papers can be found online at the AIAA Aerospace Research Central (arc.aiaa.org), marked as “Best Paper.”
Full Story (Aerospace America)
ISS Marks 25 Years of Continuous Human Presence in Orbit
ISS National Laboratory reports, “This past weekend, the International Space Station (ISS) celebrated a historic milestone: 25 years of continuous human presence in orbit. Since November 2, 2000, more than 290 astronauts from around the globe have lived and worked onboard the space station, advancing science and fostering international cooperation for the benefit of humanity.”
Full Story (ISS National Laboratory)
AIAA Survey: Forecast of Emerging Aerospace Technologies
FROM THE INSTITUTE
AIAA is working with BryceTech to produce the AIAA 2026 Forecast of Emerging Aerospace Technologies, a strategic assessment of the innovations that will define the aerospace landscape over the next two decades. This forecast will explore technologies driving future competitiveness, national capability, and societal impact. As a member of the AIAA community, your expert perspective will provide valuable insights into these technology trends. Please take a moment to fill out the emerging technology trends survey.