AINonline
• Hanneke Weitering
Robinson Unmanned has completed demonstration flights of its remotely piloted R44 AirTruck, including a landing on an offshore-style deck at a Louisiana airport. The uncrewed helicopter is designed to support offshore logistics missions, positioning the platform for cargo operations in demanding environments.
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Robinson Unmanned has completed demonstration flights of its remotely piloted R44 AirTruck, including a landing on an offshore-style deck at a Louisiana airport. The uncrewed helicopter is designed to support offshore logistics missions, positioning the platform for cargo operations in demanding environments.
The NTSB said radio contact was established before a Cessna collided with a state patrol helicopter near Carlisle Airport in Pennsylvania. The Cessna pilot was killed, while two occupants of the helicopter were injured, prompting an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the midair collision.
Egypt’s air force has received the first five of 12 Boeing CH-47F Chinook heavy-lift helicopters ordered under a contract signed in January 2023. The delivery milestone was marked at the El Alamein air show, held Sept. 8–10, advancing Egypt’s rotary-wing modernization effort.
India’s Defence Acquisition Council has approved proposals worth ₹1.1 lakh crore, taking approvals this year to ₹1.6 lakh crore and those since 2025 to ₹13 lakh crore. The package includes long-range hypersonic weapons, Sukhoi-30 upgrades, mine-laying systems, indigenous warship engines and continued AMCA development.
Satellite imagery appears to show the destruction of Russian Ka-52 and Mi-28 attack helicopters at Sochi International Airport following a Ukrainian attack. A Russian Mi-8 family multirole helicopter was also reportedly hit, highlighting the vulnerability of military aviation assets at airports outside the immediate frontline.
Alpha Unmanned Systems will supply its lightweight A900 Class I remotely piloted helicopter to the Spanish Armada’s CEVENTA experimentation center for maritime-surveillance assessment. Separately, aviation authorities AESA and ENAIRE issued guidance for authorizing high-altitude unmanned platform operations, formalizing pathways for emerging systems in Spain.
The State Department has approved a possible $800 million sale of Bell 412EPX and Bell 407M helicopters, weapons, sensors and associated equipment to Iraq. The package would support Baghdad’s effort to replace its Russian-built fleet and strengthen the capabilities of its Army Aviation Command.
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A communications failure prevented the presidential helicopter, Marine One, from alerting air traffic control as it approached an envoy aircraft. The aircraft remained within required separation guidance, but the incident highlights the operational risk created when flight crews cannot reliably communicate with ATC.
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