Aviation Week reports, “The UK Civil Aviation Authority plans to begin beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) drone demonstrations by year’s end and establish routine operations by 2027 under a road map released by the regulator Sept. 24. The road map lays out a plan to enable scalable, specific-category uncrewed aircraft…”
Full Story (Aviation Week – Subscription Publication)
Tag: UK
Virgin Orbit Space Plane Arrives In Cornwall for UK Launch
The Daily Mail (UK) reports, “The first ever orbital launch on British soil is another step closer – with Virgin Orbit’s space plane set to arrive in Cornwall later this week.” As soon as next month, Cosmic Girl will take off from Newquay with a 70-foot rocket full of satellites, which will be flown to high altitude and launched into space from there. This will mark the first satellite launch from Britain, as well as the first commercial launch from Europe and the first international launch by Virgin Orbit.
Full Story (Daily Mail)
Velis Electro Becomes Popular Among Trainee Pilots
CNN reports that the Velis Electro, “the world’s only electric plane fully certified in the EU and the UK, is taking off as a greener option for trainee pilots.” The Velis Electro “can fly up to 12,000 feet and has a maximum speed of 98 knots (113 mph). It has a flight time of around 50 minutes (plus reserve) per charge, with two batteries that take up to two hours to completely recharge.”
Full Story (CNN)
Vertical Aerospace Expects VX4 to be Certified Concurrently with UK, Europe
Aviation Week reports that Vertical Aerospace “expects to certificate its VX4 air taxi concurrently with the UK and Europe, with the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) agreeing to validate UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) type certification of the electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) aircraft.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)
AIAA Expands International Reach with New Section, Student Branches
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 5, 2025 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is pleased to announce it has chartered a new section in the United Kingdom (UK) and new student branches in seven countries. The AIAA Council of Directors approved the moves at its meeting during the 2025 AIAA SciTech Forum in Orlando, Florida.
The UK Section is located in AIAA Region VII and includes AIAA members living in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The addition of the UK Section brings the global total of AIAA sections to 58, in seven regions. Sections are led by AIAA members who volunteer to organize and offer technical programs, networking, educational opportunities, and other activities tailored to local aerospace professionals, students, and educators.
The seven new student branches have been granted three-year provisional charters to ensure they are sustainable before being officially chartered as a student branch. The universities include:
- Institut Teknologi Bandung, Indonesia
- King Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia
- M.S. Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences, India
- Military Institute of Science and Technology, Bangladesh
- Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, United States
- TED University, Turkey
- University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg
“We are thrilled to welcome the UK Section and new student branches to AIAA. We are building bridges across the globe to strengthen our connections everywhere, growing international contributions to the AIAA community. We look forward to seeing how they shape the future of aerospace,” said AIAA CEO Clay Mowry.
Media Contact: Rebecca Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell
About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, and follow AIAA on X/Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
UK to Acquire F-35s Capable of Carrying Tactical Nuclear Weapons
Reuters reports, “The British government said on Tuesday that it would purchase a dozen F-35A fighter jets capable of firing tactical nuclear weapons in what it described as the biggest expansion of its nuclear deterrent in a generation. The purchase of the Lockheed Martin jets would allow Britain’s air force to carry nuclear weapons for the first time since the end of the Cold War, Downing Street said.”
Full Story (Reuters)