AeroTime
• Gabriele Petrauskaite
Jersey Airport faced a second evening of disruption on Oct. 31 after reports of drone activity near the airfield. Four flights were unable to land as scheduled, while earlier reports said three flights were diverted in one evening; cancellations and alternative travel arrangements affected passengers. The incidents followed disruption the previous night.
UAV Development & Drone Programs
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Jersey Airport faced a second evening of disruption on Oct. 31 after reports of drone activity near the airfield. Four flights were unable to land as scheduled, while earlier reports said three flights were diverted in one evening; cancellations and alternative travel arrangements affected passengers. The incidents followed disruption the previous night.
At a manufacturing plant near Salt Lake City, drone maker Vector Defense is expanding production as the United States seeks to build capacity for inexpensive military drones. The company’s growth highlights the industrial challenge implied by a starting point described as “basically zero.”
AN/TWQ-1 Avenger systems armed with FIM-92 Stinger missiles have been deployed to protect President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. U.S. Northern Command has also supplied counter-drone fly-away sensor and jammer kits, adding detection and electronic-warfare capabilities to the site’s defenses.
Pyongyang displayed a range of reconnaissance, attack and loitering drones, alongside an aspirational stealthy unmanned combat aircraft concept. The showcase offers a public view of the breadth of North Korea’s drone ambitions, though the available report does not detail the systems’ capabilities or operational status.
General Atomics is developing NextGen, a flying-wing aircraft for strike and reconnaissance missions that uses hybrid-electric propulsion. The company also aims to conduct live-fire tests next year of an air-to-ground derivative of its FQ-42 Vengeance collaborative combat aircraft.
The US Air Force has tested new autonomous mission systems on its XQ-67A demonstrator, while China says its GJ-21 unmanned combat aircraft completed takeoff and landing tests aboard the Type 076 amphibious assault ship Sichuan. Separately, TEKEVER won a USSOCOM order for AI-enabled ISR drones, and Saab and GA-ASI tested an unmanned airborne early warning capability on the MQ-9B.
Fire Point chief executive told Reuters the Ukrainian arms maker has developed ways to carry out long-range strikes in Russia and Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine without relying on SpaceX satellite services. The disclosure highlights the company’s approach to maintaining operational capability without access to a commercial satellite network.
High activity
Chinese state media says the GJ-21 stealth attack drone has completed its first takeoff and landing aboard the amphibious assault ship Sichuan, calling it a breakthrough in the ship program. The reported milestone follows more than a year of signs that China was preparing to demonstrate ship-based operations for the aircraft.
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