Launch Planned For 2016, With Samples Returning In 2023

NASA's first mission to sample an asteroid is moving ahead into development and testing in preparation for its launch in 2016. The Origins-Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) passed a confirmation review Wednesday called Key Decision Point (KDP)-C. NASA officials reviewed a series of detailed project assessments and authorized the spacecraft's continuation into the development phase.

Approvals Come From FAA, EASA, Brazil's ANAC

The FAA, EASA, and ANAC - Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil; EASA have certified Required Navigation Performance (RNP), Vertical Navigation (VNAV), Future Air Navigation System (FANS) and Localizer Performance with Vertical Guidance (LPV) as installed on both the Legacy 600 and Legacy 650 aircraft.

Company Develops Technology To Enable Microgravity-Based Life Sciences Research

The Bionetics Corporation, a diversified engineering and applied sciences company, is set to become the newest tenant of the Space Life Sciences Laboratory (SLSL) at the Kennedy Space Center, according to Space Florida, the state’s aerospace development organization and spaceport authority.

Helo Originally Configured For Offshore Oil Transport Missions

Sikorsky Aerospace Services (SAS) has been tapped to perform the first post-delivery Search and Rescue (SAR) modifications to Brunei Shell's Sikorsky S-92 helicopter. Originally configured for offshore oil missions, the aircraft will undergo a comprehensive conversion to a SAR configuration to serve customers in Borneo and the surrounding Southeast Asia region.

Certificate Held By Precision Conversions Of Portland, OR

The FAA has granted an STC (Supplemental Type Certificate #ST02278SE) to Portland, OR,-based Precision Conversions for its 757-200PCC Combi variant. The Combi configuration includes 10 full cargo positions and seating for 54 passengers along with full galley and lavatory facilities. This is also the first certified 757-200 Combi in the world to include winglets.

Said He Experienced A Fuel Problem With The Airplane

A pilot on a local flight that originated at Chilton County, AL, airport (02A) executed a safe emergency landing on U.S. Highway 31 in Clanton, AL, Wednesday. The pilot said he experienced an engine problem with his aircraft, the make and model of which were not specified but which was described as an ultralight.

Elected Officials, Workers, Residents, Clergy Urge Port Authority To Require Airport Contractors To Give Workers Decent Wages And Benefits As Taxpayer-Subsidized JFK Expands

Elected officials, clergy and Southeast Queens residents have called for community input and fair treatment of sub-contracted workers as JFK Airport expands and Delta Airlines renovates a major terminal.

Florida's Melbourne International Airport Welcomes Aviation Maintenance Company MidairUSA

Melbourne International Airport (KMLB) on Florida’s Space Coast, has added MidairUSA’s Maintenance and Engineering complex to its aviation cluster of companies. MidairUSA, which brings a significant maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) presence to the airport’s aviation and aerospace base, plans to build hangar facilities designed to retrofit Boeing 747 airplanes.

$10.7M New Funding Advances Mission To Provide A Universal Platform For The Safe, Reliable Operation Of Drones For Commercial Use

Airware, creators of a universal development platform for commercial drones, has secured a $10.7 million Series A round of financing. The funding will enable Airware to meet increasing customer demand in the rapidly growing global market of commercially-operated drones. The round was led by Andreessen Horowitz with Google Ventures also participating.

Precision Targeting Capability Developed By NGC

The Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR) designed by Northrop Grumman Corporation for the F-16 fighter aircraft recently demonstrated its autonomous, all-environment precision targeting capability, which will enhance the aircraft's mission capabilities.

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Also: Wanna Buy A Control Tower?, SAC 7-35 Airdata Computer, Remembering Frank Beagle, Exp 35 Astros Drop In, 777X Team Named, AF Academy Grads Will Get Their Flyover!

The X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System demonstrator (UCAS-D) completed its first ever carrier-based catapult launch from USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) off the coast of Virginia Tuesday. The Commemorative Air Force (CAF) has announced plans to establish the CAF National Airbase at a major metropolitan area and its intent to launch a nationwide search immediately. ISS Commander Chris Hadfield, the first Canadian to command the station has performed a rendition of David Bowie's "Space Oddity"

RV-8 Was Being Built By Service Member Fatally Injured In KC-135 Accident In Kyrgyzstan

A special project is occurring at the EAA Chapter 79 hangar on Spokane, Washington's Felts Field. About a dozen chapter members are working to complete panel work on the RV-8 owned by a fellow member, United States Air Force Capt. Tyler Voss, who was tragically killed along with two other airmen when their KC-135 Stratotanker crashed on May 3 in Kyrgyzstan.

Previous Record Held By Lunar Rover Driven By Gene Cernan And Harrison Schmitt

While Apollo 17 astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt visited Earth's moon for three days in December 1972, they drove their mission's Lunar Roving Vehicle 19.3 nautical miles. That was the farthest total distance for any NASA vehicle driving on a world other than Earth ... until Thursday.

Some $625,000 In Gold Had Been Shipped On American Airlines

A shipment of gold worth $625,000 being transported from Guayaquil, Ecuador, to Miami International Airport aboard an American Airlines flight Tuesday vanished after the plane was unloaded at the south Florida airport.

Door To The Front Office Jammed While Pilot Took A Bio-Break

It's one of those things you might think about as the front door to your house or a hotel room door closes and locks ... can I get back in? But it's probably not the first thing that the captain of an airliner should have to be concerned about. There's somebody else in the cockpit.

Privately-Owned WWII Aircraft Will Sub For Grounded Thunderbirds

The 2013 graduating class from the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO, won't get the traditional flyover from the Thunderbirds, thanks to the team's grounding by sequestration. But that doesn't mean there will be no flyover for the class.

Landed On A Road He Mistook For A Runway

A pilot who landed on a road in Cottonwood, AZ, has been cited for flying without a proper airman certificate in an airplane that was not airworthy, according to local authorities.

Historical Fiction Set Against Invasion Of Kuwait In 1990

In order to succeed in his invasion of Kuwait on August 2, 1990, Saddam Hussein needed weapons. Weapons lead to questions: who supplied them? Were multiple countries involved in getting weapons to Iraq? And to what extent was the U.S. government involved?  

Things To Know When You Send A News Release

Aero-News gets hundreds of releases every week, ranging from industry giants like Boeing and Cessna to the smallest of flying clubs and the most quaint of air shows. After having seen the best and the worst in press releases over the years, we have some ideas to help companies do so much more to help themselves, both with ANN and with the general media.

Discrete Frequency A separate radio frequency for use in direct pilot-controller communications in air traffic control which reduces frequency congestion by controlling the number of aircraft operating on a particular frequency at one time. Discrete frequencies are normally designated for each control sector in en route/terminal ATC facilities. Discrete frequencies are listed in the Airport/Facility Directory and the DOD FLIP IFR En Route Supplement.

Aero Linx: The California Agricultural Aircraft Association (CAAA) The California Agricultural Aircraft Association (CAAA) is a non-profit trade association representing the professional aerial application industry in California. Our stated mission is to “Support individual and industry professionalism, promote ethical and safe standards of operation, and secure the future of agricultural aviation.”