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)
Tag: September 2024
Army Revamping Air Crew Training With Focus on Aircraft and Simulators
Defense News reports, “After several fatal Army aircraft crashes and the arrival of a more complicated airspace in the future, the service is reviewing and updating how it trains its pilots and its warrant officers in particular. Those changes will likely include a look at the types of helicopters soldiers are training with, simulator time and effectiveness, new rotor blades and tail rotor drive systems for the Apache and warrant officers sticking to their technical tasks for longer in the careers.”
Full Story (Defense News)
Self-Flying Cessna Begins Testing for FAA Validation
Flying Magazine reports, “Self-flying aircraft may be closer to takeoff than you think. On Thursday, Boston-based Merlin Labs announced it began what it claims is the first test campaign of a certification-ready, takeoff-to-touchdown autonomous flight system. The company’s Merlin Pilot is designed to one day allow small aircraft to fly with no humans on board.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)
EasyJet and JetZero to Partner on Development of BWB Aircraft
Airways reports, “British low-cost airline EasyJet (U2) has announced a partnership with JetZero, a California-based company, to develop a Blended-Wing Body (BWB) aircraft. With a significant step towards sustainable aviation and aircraft development, U2 has become the first European airline to partner with the U.S. startup JetZero, which specializes in BWB aircraft powered by hydrogen technology.”
Full Story (Airways)
U.S. Air Force to Boost its MH-139 Fleet by Adding Over a Dozen Helos
Breaking Defense reports, “After moving to halve the fleet in fiscal year 2025, a new Pentagon review says the Air Force now plans to add over a dozen MH-139A Grey Wolf helicopters back into the aircraft’s program of record — averting a “critical” cost breach in the process. The planned procurement boost is likely a boon to prime contractor Boeing as well as Italian firm Leonardo, whose commercial AW139 serves as the Grey Wolf’s baseline.”
Full Story (Breaking Defense)
ESA Targeting Wednesday Night for Final Launch of its First-Generation Vega Rocket
Spaceflight Now reports, “Update 7:05 a.m. EDT: Arianespace announced that the mission is scrubbed for a Tuesday night launch attempt due to “electrical issues” and is working towards an opportunity on Wednesday, Sept. 4. The European Space Agency (ESA) is preparing to complete its transition to its Vega-C rocket with the final launch of its first-generation Vega rocket. The mission, dubbed VV24, will carry an Earth-imaging satellite to a sun-synchronous orbit.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)
Aurora Flight Sciences’ sUAS Completes Long-Endurance Flight Test
Unmanned Systems Technology reports, “Aurora Flight Sciences, a Boeing company, recently completed a successful seven-hour flight test of its fuel-cell-powered small uncrewed aircraft system (sUAS), SKIRON-XLE. The test flight, conducted at an airfield in Virginia, represents a significant advancement in flight endurance for the Group 2 platform.”
Full Story (Unmanned Systems Technology)
Wilmore Reports Strange Noise Coming from Starliner Spacecraft
Ars Technica reports, “On Saturday NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore noticed some strange noises emanating from a speaker inside the Starliner spacecraft. ‘I’ve got a question about Starliner,’ Wilmore radioed down to Mission Control at Johnson Space Center in Houston. ‘There’s a strange noise coming through the speaker… I don’t know what’s making it.’ Wilmore said he was not sure if there was some oddity in the connection between the station and the spacecraft causing the noise, or something else. He asked the flight controllers in Houston to see if they could listen to the audio inside the spacecraft. A few minutes later, Mission Control radioed back that they were linked via ‘hardline’ to listen to audio inside Starliner, which has now been docked to the International Space Station for nearly three months.”
Full Story (Ars Technica)