Tag: October 2025

Washington 101 for the Next Generation of Aerospace Innovators

FROM THE INSTITUTE
As commercial spaceflight expands and small satellites reshape the space economy, one reality remains unchanged: policy discussed in Washington, DC, matters. This was AIAA’s Director of Public Policy & Government Relations Ryan Cooperman’s core message at the SmallSat Education Conference at NASA Kennedy Space Center, where he joined over 700 students and educators passionate about space. He offered a crash course on the U.S. legislative process in which he discussed how policy is made, who shapes it, and why it matters to the future of aerospace.
Full Story (Aerospace America)

NTSB Releases Urgent Learjet Landing Gear Warning

Flying Magazine reports, “The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has issued an urgent recommendation for the owners and operators of certain Bombardier Learjets to check the security of the landing gear stemming from the preliminary investigation into the fatal runway excursion at Arizona’s Scottsdale Airport (KSDL) in February.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)

ISS Marks 25 Years of Uninterrupted Human Presence in Orbit

AP News reports, “It’s an unprecedented space streak: 25 years of people living off-planet without even a moment’s pause. The International Space Station marks a quarter-century of continuous occupancy this weekend, boasting a guest list of nearly 300 — mostly professional astronauts but also the occasional space touristand movie director. The first full-time residents opened the hatch on Nov. 2, 2000.”
Full Story (AP News)

USAF Considering Expanding CCA Pairing Capabilities Beyond F-22

Aviation Week reports, “The U.S. Air Force is only set, for now, to pair Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) with the Lockheed Martin F-22, though consideration is still ongoing for the rest of its fighter types. The service in a new report to Congress says the Raptor is the ‘threshold platform’ for CCA, though integration with F-16s, F-35As, F-15Es and F-15EXs is an emerging consideration. Uncrewed aircraft will eventually be paired with the upcoming Boeing F-47.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)

Japan’s HTV-X Spacecraft Arrives at International Space Station

Ars Technica reports, “A cargo ship from Japan pulled alongside the International Space Station on Wednesday, maneuvering close enough for the lab’s robotic arm to reach out and grab it as the vehicles soared 260 miles over the South Atlantic Ocean. ‘HTV capture complete,’ Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui radioed from the ISS. ‘I just want to say congratulations to all teams and people involved in this mission. Also, thank you very much for your hard work and support for the first HTV-X mission.’”
Full Story (Ars Technica)

NASA’s X-59 Quiet Supersonic Research Aircraft Performs First Flight

Aviation Week reports, “NASA began flight tests of its needle-nosed X-59 Quesst quiet supersonic research aircraft with a 1 hr. 7 min. initial sortie from Palmdale, California, to the nearby Edwards AFB on Oct. 28. Flown by NASA X-59 lead pilot Nils Larson, the much-anticipated first flight of the Lockheed Martin-built aircraft began at 8:14 a.m. Pacific time with an unrestricted climb from Palmdale’s 12,000 ft.-long runway 07/25.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)

SpaceX Falcon 9 Launches Another 28 Starlink Satellites from California

SPACE reports, “SpaceX launched yet another batch of its Starlink satellites today (Oct. 27),” sending 28 of them up from California’s central coast.  Launch took place “at 8:43 p.m. EDT (5:43 p.m. local California time).” The rocket’s first stage returned “to Earth as planned about 8.5 minutes later, landing in the Pacific Ocean on the SpaceX drone ship ‘Of Course I Still Love You.’”
Full Story (SPACE)