Tag: test

Archer Partners with Two Saudi Companies to Develop and Test Air Taxi Services

Reuters reports, “Archer Aviation said on Wednesday it has signed a deal with The Helicopter Company and luxury developer Red Sea Global, both owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, to develop, test and potentially deploy electric aircraft in the Kingdom. Western air taxi makers have been stepping up efforts to expand beyond their home markets, with the Middle East emerging as a key target thanks to its fast-growing tourism sector, supportive regulators and willingness to invest early in next-generation transport technologies.”
Full Story (Reuters)

General Atomics Demonstrates MQ-20 Avenger UCAV’s Autonomous Flight Capabilities

Unmanned Systems Technology reports, “General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) has flown U.S. government-provided autonomy software onboard a company-owned MQ-20 Avenger® unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) during the Air Force Test Center’s Orange Flag 25-1 all-domain test series. A government-provided Pilot Vehicle Interface (PVI) was fitted aboard an Avenger jet-powered UCAV in the demonstration which took place February 19-21 at Edwards Air Force Base, California. GA-ASI also demonstrated the ability to rapidly swap between autonomy systems midflight over Proliferated Low Earth Orbit (PLEO) satellites utilizing an autonomy product from Shield AI.”
Full Story (Unmanned Systems Technology)

Rocket Lab Moves Forward with Suborbital Hypersonic Technology Initiative

Seeking Alpha reports, “Rocket Lab USA announced late on Tuesday that it successfully launched a suborbital mission in November to test hypersonic technology for the Department of Defense. Hypersonic technology refers to vehicles and systems capable of traveling at speeds exceeding Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound12. These systems operate in a unique aerodynamic regime characterized by extreme temperatures, thin shock layers, and complex air flows.”
Full Story (Seeking Alpha)

US Navy Partners with Lockheed, General Atomics to Test New Drone Control System

Breaking Defense reports, “US Navy pilots sitting comfortably in Maryland recently took a new carrier-based drone control center out for a spin for the first time, piloting a General Atomics MQ-20 Avenger thousands of miles away using autonomous tech made by Lockheed Martin’s secretive Skunk Works division. The live-flight test of the Navy’s Unmanned Carrier Aviation Mission Control Station (UMCS), conducted Nov. 5, was done ‘as part of an effort to advance technology for future Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA),’ Naval Aviation Systems Command wrote in a release on Thursday.”
Full Story (Breaking Defense)

Crewed Starliner Launch Scrubbed Due to Valve Issue

Space News reports, “Controllers scrubbed the first attempt to launch Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner on a crewed test flight May 6 because of a valve problem with the rocket, delaying the launch by at least four days. The launch director for the Atlas 5 rocket called for the scrub a little more than two hours before the scheduled 10:34 p.m. Eastern launch of the Crew Flight Test mission from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.”
Full Story (Space News)

Boeing to Launch First Crewed Test Flight Tonight

The Washington Post reports, “A decade after NASA awarded Boeing a contract to fly astronauts to the ISS, Boeing will finally attempt to fly its Starliner spacecraft with people onboard. If all goes to plan, at 10:34 p.m. on Monday, the company is set to fly a pair of veteran astronauts, Sunita Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore, on a mission that will be one of the most significant tests for Boeing’s space division — and for NASA — in years.”
Full Story (Washington Post)

Boeing Starliner Crewed Test Flight Passes Critical Review

Space News reports, “The first crewed flight of Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft is a step closer to launch after completing a major pre-launch review April 25. NASA announced at an April 25 briefing that, at the completion of the two-day Flight Test Readiness Review, officials approved plans to proceed with the Crew Flight Test (CFT) mission, with a launch scheduled for 10:34 p.m. Eastern May 6 from Cape Canaveral’s Space Launch Complex (SLC) 41.”
Full Story (Space News)