Business & Military

Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works says the replacement it’s proposing for the SR-71 spy plane, the SR-72, is a Mach 6 drone that doesn’t need to be stealthy because it’s so fast. Aviation Week and Space Technology got an exclusive on the public unveiling of the project, which it quotes a Lockheed Martin spokesperson as saying […]

A nine-foot statue of Korean War ace and Vietnam veteran Brig. Gen. James Robinson Robbie Risner still stands at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, but the man himself was lost to the world with his passing at his home, Oct. 22. Throughout his career, Risner earned three Distinguished Flying Crosses, two Silver Stars, […]

The TSA says it’s unlikely security processes at U.S. airports will change much following the shooting at LAX on Friday. The agency said in a statement that“passengers may see an increased presence of local law enforcement officers throughout the country” but there are no immediate plans to arm security staff or change procedures. Meanwhile, 23-year-old […]

Pilot logbooks and the historical archive of the Concorde as amassed by now deceased British test pilot Brian Trubshaw will be put up for auction next week. Trubshaw was the first to fly the supersonic passenger plane, Concorde 002, in Britain in 1969. He then flew six years of test flights in the jet before […]

Russias fifth flying Sukhoi PAK FA T-50, has flown this month in Russia as part of a test program expected to include roughly 2,000 test flights culminating with the jets entry into service (perhaps as early as 2016), according to Russian news sources. The flight lasted 50 minutes and tested the aircrafts engines, stability and […]

Embraer plans to assemble its new fly-by-wire Legacy 450 and 500 business jets at an expansion of its Melbourne, Fla, operations. The company announced Tuesday that, subject to various approvals, the company will add an assembly line for the midsize aircraft in 2014 and the first Legacy 500 will be delivered from there in 2016. […]

With its advanced systems, modern ergonomics and luxurious-yet sporty-cabin design, it may be easy to sell pilots on the Cirrus SR22s capabilities. But it might also be an easy aircraft to sell to paying passengers. You might assume that commercial travelers accustomed to larger jet aircraft might view the Cirrus as another one of those […]

The possible pending sale of the assets of the jet business of the former Hawker Beechcraft Corporation likely means the end of the jet line according to a published report. CEO Bill Boisture told the Wichita Eagle sale of the jet assets, which were orphaned by the bankruptcy restructuring of the previous company, is “dangerously […]

Nextant Aerospace has hade a business of “remanufacturing” the Hawker Beechjet 400A/Hawker 400XP — offering a new aircraft experience at a used aircraft price. Now it’s expanding that business model to the King Air, refitting the aircraft with GE engines. view on YouTube

AeroVironment, which manufactures more unmanned aircraft systems than anyone else, has signed an agreement to work with Eurocopter, the two companies announced this week. They plan to cooperate to create new products for both military and commercial customers. “This agreement creates the opportunity for both companies to explore expanding into new markets and developing new […]