Australian Aviation
• Hannah Dowling
Qantas plans to eliminate about 850 Australian corporate roles from mid-2027, shifting some functions to Accenture teams in India and Australia as it redesigns operations around greater use of artificial intelligence. The plan has drawn union criticism over assurances that no Australian jobs would be offshored.
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Qantas plans to eliminate about 850 Australian corporate roles from mid-2027, shifting some functions to Accenture teams in India and Australia as it redesigns operations around greater use of artificial intelligence. The plan has drawn union criticism over assurances that no Australian jobs would be offshored.
Caltech’s ASTRA robot has assembled a truss section in orbit without human assistance, advancing work on building large space structures robotically. Separately, mechanical engineering assistant professor Erik Komendera developed a vibration- and AI-based method for estimating how deeply rocks are buried, potentially helping future robotic missions clear terrain autonomously.
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SpaceX is seeking to build, own and operate a gas-fired power plant and supercomputing facility in Starbase, Texas, according to a public hearing notice. The roughly $24 billion project would combine large-scale power generation with computing infrastructure at the company’s launch-site city, extending its footprint beyond launch vehicles and spacecraft.
Thousands of inactive or non-communicating satellites orbit Earth in low Earth orbit, creating a challenge for operators that rely on spacecraft to signal their presence. Researchers are developing CORTEX, a system designed to guide a repair satellite to autonomously dock with these “zombie” spacecraft.
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A prototype Amazon Prime Air MK30 delivery drone has joined a Museum of Flight exhibit, highlighting a decade of evolution in autonomous delivery technology. The announcement places the aircraft’s development in a public museum setting, though the available report provides no details on its operational history or exhibit duration.
The Pentagon has tasked robotics startup Machina Labs with developing a way to mass-produce inexpensive attack drones in quickly assembled modular factories. The effort reflects a push to scale autonomous systems for modern warfare through manufacturing that can be deployed and assembled rapidly.
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SpaceX and Tesla shares extended losses after Democratic victories in the U.S. midterm elections heightened investor concerns about potential congressional probes, tighter regulation and slower data center expansion. Reports put Thursday’s declines at about 9% for SpaceX and 11% for Tesla, with their combined market value down more than $420 billion.
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