20 Satellites Left to Burn up in Reentry Thanks to 2nd Stage Leak

The FAA has grounded the SpaceX Falcon 9 fleet after a launch last week inadvertently deployed a handful of Starlink satellites into an unintended, eccentric orbit. The FAA said it was investigating what happened alongside SpaceX, and that any final report will be approved by the administration. For now, the grounding may end up putting off a handful of other missions, like upcoming Starlink missions scheduled to put more satellites into their orbital internet constellation. SpaceX was quick to speak on exactly what caused the problem, stating that the failed SpaceX 9-3 mission performed admirably aside from a malfunction in the second stage. 

Team Begins Around-the-Clock Duty, Apprenticeship to Train Future Firefighters

Coulson Aviation has gotten a $400 million Aussie dollar (about $269,320,000 USD) 10-year contract with Australia’s New South Wales (NSW) Rural Fire Service (RFS), putting them in charge of the entire firefighting fleet. The deal has some additional benefits this time around, expanding on Coulson's role over the last 5 years simply managing, operating, and maintaining the local firefighting air wing. Now, the Coulson team will take care of 11 aircraft in all, including one of their flagship Boeing 737 FIRELINER Large Airtankers (LAT). The fleet includes a pair of Cessna Citations, half a dozen Bell-412 helicopters, a CH-47 Chinook, and a Beechcraft Super King Air.

First Humans on the Moon July 20,1969

For readers of a certain age who were mesmerized by the idea of space travel, the United States’ space program culminated during the summer of 1969 when NASA’s Apollo 11 mission thrilled every American and just about every other human on the planet as the spacecraft’s Lunar Excursion Module (LEM or LM for short) touched down on the surface of the Moon. “Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.” With those words, every person who was tuned into the radio or television, but especially the NASA folks in the Mission Operations Control Room at the Johnson Space Flight Center in Houston, Texas, and of course the families of the astronauts, let out the collective b

Aircraft Went Down a Quarter Mile Offshore Leaving 1 Dead, 2 Missing

A tourist helicopter operated by Ali’I Kaua’i Air Tours and Charters went into the water about a quarter mile off the Na Pali coast of the Hawaiian island of Kaua’i. One person died and two are missing in the crash that occurred about 1:20 p.m. local time on July 11. It was reported to Kaua’i Police by two hikers on the Kalalau Trail who saw the aircraft go down. Soon after the crash, lifeguards from the Kaua’i Ocean Safety Bureau recovered the body of 53-year-old Amy Nichole Ruark Quintua. The pilot of the helicopter, 69-year-old Guy Croyden, and the other passenger, 60-year-old James Quintua remain missing.

Temporarily Reduced Functionality is an Appropriate Trade-Off to Get Deliveries Started Again

Lockheed Martin's backlog of F-35 Lightning IIs will soon be cleared to leave the nest and head to their new homes now that a 'truncated' version of their Technology Refresh 3 package is approved. As seems to be the norm for Lockheed Martin's expensive fighter, development is behind on its timelines, with the TR-3 suite facing issues to the point that deliveries have been paused altogether. The DOD didn't want to accept F-35's without the TR-3 upgrade, which has effectively paused all deliveries until the Joint Program Office could find a build that works. Now, the JPO has approved the delivery of aircraft with a truncated version of its TR-3 softwar

MAX 10 Finds a Buyer Despite Certification Holdup

Aviation Capital Group placed an order for 35 new Boeing 737 MAX jets, with 16 737-8s and 19 737-10s.It's an interesting decision to snag some of -10 at the moment, given its frustrating holdup in the certification process. Once okayed, however, it will offer the best per-seat economics of its category (taking Boeing's word for it, at least) since the MAX 10 seats up to 230 passengers with a 3,100-nm range. The smaller -8 can carry up to 210 pax, should operators really want to pack 'em in, with a similar range of 3,500 nm.

Also: GE Hybrid Electric Engine, Simulated Mars Mission, Drone Exhibition, Shell Steps Back From SAF

Skyryse, designer and developer of the One, has announced their first public exhibition of the pared-down, simplified-control helicopter. Skyryse proudly touts the fact that their new design only requires a "single control stick and two touch screens" in a strong turn away from the norm of complex, advanced rotorcraft. Aurora Flight Sciences has been chosen to continue onwards designing and developing its 'SPeed and Runway Independent Technologies' (or SPRINT, of course) X-Plane Demonstration Project. The original program entered phase 1 in December

Also: GE Hybrid Electric Engine, Simulated Mars Mission, Drone Exhibition, Shell Steps Back From SAF

Skyryse, designer and developer of the One, has announced their first public exhibition of the pared-down, simplified-control helicopter. Skyryse proudly touts the fact that their new design only requires a "single control stick and two touch screens" in a strong turn away from the norm of complex, advanced rotorcraft. Aurora Flight Sciences has been chosen to continue onwards designing and developing its 'SPeed and Runway Independent Technologies' (or SPRINT, of course) X-Plane Demonstration Project. The original program entered phase 1 in De

Also: Eco Aero-Vandalism, Simulated Mars, KC-46A Pegasus Record, USAF Warrant Officers

Polaris Dawn is the first of the Polaris Program, a series of three planned space missions all funded and commanded by Jared Isaacman, the billionaire founder of Shift4. The privately funded mission is slated to be launched July 31. SpaceX has announced it will provide the launch capability with its Falcon 9 rocket and the Dragon crew capsule. The Royal Canadian Air Force is celebrating its 100th anniversary at AirVenture Oshkosh 2024, bringing out the whole kit and kaboodle of the Canadian performing fleet. That means they'll have the headlining Snowbirds, equi

From 2017 (YouTube Version): So You Want To Be A Drone Racing Pilot?…

One of the fastest growing segments of the model aviation industry is the use of First Person View, or FPV, on drones for racing and other applications. At the AMA Expo West in Ontario, CA, ANN CEO and Editor-in-Chief Jim Campbell spoke to Derek Sachtleben, Associate Brand Manager for Blade at Horizon Hobby, about how to get into FPV flying. Sachtleben said that there are a lot of younger people getting into FPV drones and drone racing using aircraft ranging in sizes from the palm of your hand to larger, purpose-built racing drones. He said that the rapid pace of technological change

Events at EAA AirVenture’s WomenVenture Center Showcase Career Opportunities

Career opportunities for women in military aviation will be a featured segment of WomenVenture’s slate of panel discussions, forums, and presentations at this year’s EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. And who better to lead the military’s effort to promote women’s role in flight and attract recruits than the subject matter experts themselves! Capt. Meredith Porter is the battalion training officer for the 1st Battalion, 147th Aviation Regiment, a UH-60 Black Hawk unit in the Wisconsin Army National Guard in Madison. She will be on a panel during the week to help share the stories of women in aviation, discuss her career, and showcase opportunities

Attempted To Land The Airplane On The Remaining Available Runway But Was Unable To Stop The Airplane Before It Impacted A Fence

On June 23, 2024, about 0906 central daylight time, a Cirrus SR22T airplane, N87AQ, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Boerne, Texas. The pilot receiving instruction, flight instructor, and passenger were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 instructional flight. According to the flight instructor, the preflight inspection and engine run-up were normal. During takeoff, about 20 to 30 ft above the runway, a crew alerting system (CAS) message for fuel flow illuminated.

Aero Linx: National Center for Aerospace & Transportation Technologies NCATT’s mission is to provide a forum through which subject matter experts from industry, government, and education develop technical knowledge and skill standards.

Decision Altitude (DA) A specified altitude (mean sea level (MSL)) on an instrument approach procedure (ILS, GLS, vertically guided RNAV) at which the pilot must decide whether to continue the approach or initiate an immediate missed approach if the pilot does not see the required visual references.

"SpaceX will perform a full investigation in coordination with the FAA, determine root cause, and make corrective actions to ensure the success of future missions. With a robust satellite and rocket production capability, and a high launch cadence, we’re positioned to rapidly recover and continue our pace as the world’s most active launch services provider."

Source: A SpaceX statement issued after a rare inflight loss of a mission as a second stage booster misfired and caused its payload to be lofted into a much lower orbit than planned.