Airline Weekly
• Gordon Smith
Virgin Atlantic CEO Corneel Koster discusses the pressures facing the airline, including fuel economics, artificial intelligence and air traffic control meltdowns, in an interview with Gordon Smith at Skift Global Forum in New York.
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Virgin Atlantic CEO Corneel Koster discusses the pressures facing the airline, including fuel economics, artificial intelligence and air traffic control meltdowns, in an interview with Gordon Smith at Skift Global Forum in New York.
Google has launched a satellite carrying several of the company’s AI chips, beginning an effort to determine whether advanced computing can operate in orbit. The mission will test the performance and practicality of running AI hardware in the space environment.
Certo Aerospace has raised £35 million to accelerate development of an autonomous coaxial heavy-lift helicopter. The funding will support the company’s efforts to advance the aircraft, although the announcement provides no further details on its intended market, technical milestones or deployment timeline.
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NASA is planning three lunar investigations to assess environmental hazards, locate underground lava tubes and search for water ice needed for a future outpost. Separately, Honda and Redwire are developing robotic systems to automate laboratory work and perform dangerous tasks alongside crews on commercial stations and deep-space missions.
High activity
Google is testing tensor processing units aboard Planet Labs satellites after a SpaceX launch, advancing its Project Suncatcher concept for orbital AI infrastructure. The effort arrives alongside Satlyt’s $8 million funding round for virtual on-orbit data centers and Foundational’s $11 million plan to commercialize satellite laser ranging.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Project Meridian, a new Pentagon effort led by Elon Musk, Anduril founder Palmer Luckey and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. The 120-day study will examine weapons, autonomous systems and military capabilities needed for future conflicts as part of broader Pentagon initiatives.
The FAA has certified Garmin’s Autoland system for the Epic E1000 AX, enabling passengers to activate the aircraft’s automated safety system from multiple locations in the cabin. The approval expands the availability of an emergency-response capability for this high-performance general aviation aircraft.
An FAA filing identifies Anduril’s CP-200 as a Group 3, fixed-wing remotely piloted aircraft with a twin-boom configuration, propeller-driven propulsion and a small internal-combustion reciprocating engine. The request marks a regulatory step for the company’s newest unmanned aircraft design.
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