MRO   Helicopter   Sikorsky   Europe   M&A   Aircraft Manufacturing (OEMs)   Defense Budgets & Spending   Defense Industry & Major Contractors   Policy & Regulation   Geopolitical Developments & Conflict Impact   Defense Deals   Textron  
Aviation Week • Tony Osborne

Bell Textron Ukraine set up as helicopter assembly and support hub

Bell Textron has established a new subsidiary in Ukraine—Bell Textron Ukraine—and is preparing to open a dedicated office. The unit is designed to serve as the hub for long-term industrial cooperation, supporting helicopter assembly as well as maintenance and repair activities.

2026-04-17T10:45:15.785400-07:00
China   Military Aircraft Procurement   Geopolitical Developments & Conflict Impact   Asia-Pacific (APAC)  
FlightGlobal • May Lee

China’s AEW&C fleet is growing, but can it survive modern warfare?

By FlightGlobal: The KJ-600 features an IRST sensor and air-to-air refuelling. Source: Chinese social media Beijing is making significant progress with new airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft, even as doubts grow about the survivability of such platforms in modern warfare.

2026-04-17T19:45:21.193767-07:00
Satellite   Aircraft Manufacturing (OEMs)   Defense Industry & Major Contractors   Human Spaceflight & Space Stations   Space Policy & International Cooperation   Space Defense & Militarization   Policy & Regulation  
Breaking Defense • Theresa Hitchens

Lockheed Martin nabs $105M ground system contract to support next-gen GPS

By Breaking Defense: The upgrade to be performed under then new contract would allow Lockheed Martin's AEP ground system to replace RTX's long-troubled OCX program for future GPS IIIF birds.

Also: Satellite Evolution and indiastrategic.in
2026-04-17T15:37:15.080655-07:00
Military Aircraft Procurement   Orders   Boeing   Boeing 747   Qatar Airways  
The War Zone • Howard Altman, Tyler Rogoway

Qatari 747-8i Gifted To Trump For Interim Air Force One Is Undergoing Test Flights

By The War Zone: The 747 is being rushed into service and the Air Force now says it is expected to be delivered this summer. By Howard Altman , Add TWZ (opens in a new tab) More information Adding us as a Preferred Source in Google by using this link indicates that you would like to see more of our content in Google News results.

2026-04-17T16:29:57.733275-07:00
UAV Development & Drone Programs   AI   Defense Industry & Major Contractors  
Breaking Defense • Sydney J Freedberg Jr

Northrop Grumman’s Talon IQ testbed hot-swaps AI brains mid-flight

By Breaking Defense: “While the aircraft was flying, the software was queued up so that we could have different companies’ behaviors take control of the platform and fly [it]," said Dan Salluce, Northrop’s senior director for aerospace systems.

Also: Janes
2026-04-17T15:37:14.670447-07:00
Satellite   Military Aircraft Procurement   Defense Budgets & Spending   Space Defense & Militarization   Policy & Regulation   Defense Policy  
Breaking Defense • Michael Marrow

Air Force secretary eyes multi-year deals for satellites, aircraft

By Breaking Defense: Pentagon officials are seeking lawmakers’ authorization to buy weapon systems through multi-year deals “across the board, not only with munitions, but actually with the production of aircraft, with the production of spacecraft,” said Air Force Secretary Troy Meink.

2026-04-17T15:37:14.693819-07:00
Space Force   Commercial Space   Space Defense & Militarization   Industry Leader Profiles & Interviews  
SpaceNews.com • SpaceNews Editor

The Space Force’s ‘commercial first’ strategy in action with Col. Tim Trimailo

By SpaceNews.com: In this episode of Space Minds, Mike Gruss talks with Col. Tim Trimailo on how the Space Force is working with industry. They discuss what the service wants to see from new companies, how they’re casting a wider net and what’s driving this need for speed.

2026-04-17T17:42:41.533122-07:00