Aerospace Daily & Defense Report

Russian forces have begun firing North Korean-provided ballistic missiles into Ukraine.

Astrobotic Technology is pitching an innovative strategy for the future mining of the Moon using rocket propulsion for extraction.

U.S. aircraft on Jan. 4 struck and killed the leader of an Iranian proxy group in Baghdad.

The Indo-Pacific Command area of responsibility is particularly of interest to the U.S. Department of Defense.

Surf Air Mobility has announced a new partnership with Kenyan carriers Safarilink and Yellow Wings to electrify their Cessna Caravan fleets by 2027.

Crane has acquired Vian Enterprises, a supplier of aerospace oil lubrication systems including pumps, valves, fluid regulators and gerotors, for $103 million.

The International Air Traffic Association (IATA) estimates that an inventory of 40.1 million flights will be available in 2024.

Arlington Capital Partners says it is consolidating and rebranding its businesses focused on manufacturing precision aerospace and defense engine components.

Atlanta-based high-speed system developer Hermeus has completed ground tests of its first fully integrated Quarterhorse “dynamic iron bird” evaluation vehicle.

The Indonesian defense and finance ministries have decided to delay the acquisition of 12 Qatari Dassault Mirage 2000-5s due to “limited fiscal capacity.”

Japanese financing and leasing company SMFL Mirai and JAXA plan to design business concepts for satellite leasing and reselling.

SpaceX opened its 2024 launch manifest on Jan. 2 with a Falcon 9 mission to continue building its Starlink satellite constellation.

Norway is to supply two Lockheed Martin F-16 fighters and a cadre of flight instructors to support the training of Ukrainian pilots in Denmark.

The Pakistan Air Force is planning to acquire the Chinese J-31/FC-31 combat aircraft.

Aviation services company Elliott Aviation announced the delivery of its first Beechcraft King Air B200 turboprop upgraded with the Garmin Autoland system.

The U.S. Army on Jan. 3 announced it ordered one Bombardier Global 6500, with options for two more.

DARPA has decided to move forward with a new X-plane designed by Aurora Flight Sciences.

A rapidly developed surface-to-air missile system based on MBDA’s Asraam has achieved hit rates of 90% against Russian targets in Ukraine.

The Japanese Ministry of Defense and the U.S. Air Force have announced a joint research program on AI for UAVs to operate alongside crewed fighters.

Korea Aerospace Industries announced that it has delivered all 12 FA-50GFs to the Polish Air Force, 15 months after contract signature.

The award to Raytheon/MBDA joint venture Comlog will supply GEM-T missiles to Germany, the Netherlands, Romania, and Spain initially, although NATO says other Patriot users are expected “to benefit from the conditions of the contract.”

India kicked off the 2024 launch calendar with deployment of an X-ray astronomy satellite from the Satish Dhawann Space Center.

U.S. battery startup SES AI is targeting the urban air mobility market with its lithium-metal cells.

Led by SpaceX, the number of orbital launch attempts last year rose by 20% over 2022.

Rocket Lab has received a $489 million contract to design, build and operate 18 space vehicles on behalf of an undisclosed U.S. government customer.