The Southwest Research Institute won a $15.6 million contract to design and build the Solar Wind Plasma Sensor for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Follow On (SWFO) Lagrange 1 satellite. NOAA announced the cost plus, fixed-fee contract July 1, which it awarded through NASA. Under the contract, the Southwest Research Institute willRead More

The first half of 2020 has been sluggish for the commercial launch industry, but its problems can’t be explained solely by the coronavirus pandemic. According to statistics compiled by SpaceNews, there were 45 orbital launch attempts in first six months of 2020, including four failed launches. That would put the overall launch industry on aRead More

A new space training program for the next generation of Arab astronomers and scientists has been launched in the UAE, as the country counts down to its landmark mission to Mars, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, announced. Called Arab Space Pioneers,Read More

LOT Polish Airlines has resumed its first international flights since the suspension of passenger flights in mid-March. As of this month, LOT’s route network will include the first long-haul flights to Canada, South Korea and Japan, as well as flights to the UK, Albania, Montenegro and Ukraine. The first passengers flew on-board LOT planes toRead More

Gulfstream delivered the 200th G280 in late June, marking what company president Mark Burns describes as ‘a tremendous milestone’ in the history of the Savannah, Georgia-based airframer. The super-midsize twin was launched in 2008 as a replacement for the G200, a program acquired by Gulfstream in 2001 from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), where it wasRead More

Global business aircraft activity continued its post-Covid-19 recovery last month, with traffic down 30 percent from year-ago levels, according to data released today by WingX Advance. But the business aviation segment is still outpacing the airline recovery, which was down about 50 percent year-over-year in June, it added. The North American market has had theRead More

Africa’s travel and tourism industry has lost $55-billion due to the closure of borders to limit the spread of coronavirus, the African Union said Thursday. On a continent where safaris are a powerful tourist magnet, the sector has been badly hit by lockdowns that shuttered air, land and sea borders. “The impact is really severe,”Read More

Boeing’s beleaguered 737 Max has taken a big step towards recertification more than 15 months after it was grounded, as it launched on its first official recertification flight. The aircraft, operating as flight number BOE701, took off from Seattle’s Boeing Field on 29 June, and headed to Moses Lake, Washington, about 120nm (216km) to theRead More