Boeing announced it has begun the process of relocating its Service Life Modification work on the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet away from the St. Louis area, with operations there scheduled to sunset in 2027. The move was anticipated and is part of Boeing’s expansion and transition plans in support of future programs in the Gateway City.
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After more than a year being grounded for modifications, the Scaled Composites Model 437 “Vanguard” has returned to flight testing. The aircraft first flew in 2024, quickly taking a break from the skies as it prepared to serve as the airframe for Northrop Grumman’s Beacon autonomy test program. Sergei Sikorsky, whose father, Igor, founded Sikorsky Aircraft decades ago, passed on September 18 at 100 years old. He spent 41 years building his father’s legacy in the industry, taking Sikorsky’s groundbreaking developments and shaping them into some of the most renowned military helicopters in history. Yosemite National Park has been off limits to BASE jumpers for nearly 50 years. Now, a nonprofit called BASE Access is suing in federal court, arguing the ban is unconstitutional and that Yosemite should reopen to legal jumps. BAS
NASA announced it has awarded Blue Origin a Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) task order with an option to deliver its VIPER exploration rover to the South Pole region of the Moon, where it will search for volatile resources such as ice and collect scientific data to support future exploration at the Moon and Mars. This award calls for Blue Origin to deliver the VIPER, or Volatile Investigating Polar Exploration Rover to the lunar surface in late 2027 as part of NASA’s Artemis campaign. DJI has brought the first-ever compact drone to feature a 1-inch sensor, its Mini 5 Pro, to the market… the European and Canadian market, that is. Government suspicion and tariff policies are preventing the drone maker from bringing its one-of-a-kind creation to the US, cutting one of the company’s biggest spenders from the launch. Uber Technologies and Fl
NASA announced it has awarded Blue Origin a Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) task order with an option to deliver its VIPER exploration rover to the South Pole region of the Moon, where it will search for volatile resources such as ice and collect scientific data to support future exploration at the Moon and Mars. This award calls for Blue Origin to deliver the VIPER, or Volatile Investigating Polar Exploration Rover to the lunar surface in late 2027 as part of NASA’s Artemis campaign. DJI has brought the first-ever compact drone to feature a 1-inch sensor, its Mini 5 Pro, to the market… the European and Canadian market, that is. Government suspicion and tariff policies are preventing the drone maker from bringing its one-of-a-kind creation to the US, cutting one of the company’s biggest spenders from the launch. Uber Technologies
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The US Army recently confirmed its plans to thin out its active duty aviation ranks, cutting 6,500 positions as it phases in unmanned systems. The changes are slated to begin in the coming months and continue through fiscal year 2027. Currently, about 30,000 soldiers serve in aviation roles ranging from pilots to support crews. By the time the cuts are finished, roughly one in five of those positions will be gone. Secretary of Transportation Sean P. Duffy announced that the FAA met and exceeded its goal for hiring air traffic controllers for Fiscal Year 2025 by bringing on 2,026 new controllers. The goal was 2,000 controllers, and the number of new hires is 20 percent more than the previous administration hired from January to September 2024. The US Air Force is well on its way to flying its next-generation fighter, with the first of many F-47 jets
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Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works revealed its new autonomous drone it calls “Vectis,” which it says is the right size and is adaptable enough to partner with both Air Force and Navy crewed combat aircraft. While the aircraft is not necessarily aimed at Increment 2 of the Air Force’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program, it will be flying within two years and it could fit into the Increment 1 criteria as well. Drone parachute manufacturer Aerial Vehicle Safety Solutions (AVSS) has voluntarily allowed the FAA to revoke its certification for operation-over-people with the Skydio X10 system. The permission was granted in August 2024, but after spending months on the market without a single sale, it appears the parachute-equipped drone has been abandoned altogether. uAvionix is calling on Pilots to support Portable EC under the FAA’s
Pilot... Attempted To Enter The Right Side Of The Aircraft And Inadvertently Sat On The Throttle Control
Analysis: Security camera video footage showed the pilot fuel the powered parachute and then start the engine. The pilot then attempted to enter the right side of the aircraft and inadvertently sat on the throttle control, bending it into the “full throttle” position. The pilot was never strapped into the seat with the four-point restraint system and the aircraft departed across the airport. The aircraft entered a grass field, impacted terrain, cartwheeled, and the pilot was ejected. The aircraft came to rest upright, with a nose-high attitude, in the grass field.
Airbase Georgia Volunteers, AirCorps Aviation Making Progress
The Commemorative Air Force’s Airbase Georgia acquired a P-47N Thunderbolt built by Republic Aviation, they knew that to restore it back to airworthiness they had a long road ahead of them. But support from volunteers and the general public has been fueling progress on one of the most ambitious restoration projects in its history.
The GA community is eagerly anticipating the date that marks the beginning of a new era for many pilots: October 22, 2025. That is when the long-awaited Modernization of Special Airworthiness Certification – MOSAIC – final rule takes effect, and it will have a profound influence on many aspects of general aviation but perhaps most especially sport pilots. OK.... with a little over a month to go, it’s time to get serious! Thanks to the folks at Sun n Fun, we have a highly professional online ticketing apparatus at our disposal for next month’s Affordable Flying Expo. And we have other good news... use the code “AFE2025” and you can get $5 OFF the adult ticket price of $15 or even more for a three day pass. After an insane amount of work on the part of the ANN crew and more than a little hand holding by the
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