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☆ Ukraine's smart air defense threatens one of Russia's most advanced jets, leaving it too scared to use them, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Since the start of the war, Russia's air force has struggled in combat over Ukraine. Moscow has been afraid to use them because of Ukraine's smart air defense, two experts told Insider. But, per an intelligence update earlier this week from the British ministry of defense, Russia has only used the jets from within its own airspace. Dr. Matthew Ford, a professor at the Swedish Defence University, also credited Ukraine's air defense to deterring Russian incursions. "[Ukraine's] air defense is sufficiently credible to make it open to question for the Russians as to whether they want to commit their air power," he added.

☆ Ongoing headaches with F-35 fighter jets are rippling through the rest of the US military's combat aircraft fleet
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

US Air Force maintainers work on an F-35A at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada in February 2020. Nial BradshawRussia's air force has been mocked for poor maintenance that has undercut its airpower in the Ukraine war. Particularly troubling was a November 2022 GAO study that analyzed readiness of 49 US military aircraft models between 2011 and 2021. A reassembled F-35A is hoisted during a training course at Hill Air Force Base in September 2022. The Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps together plan to spend $20.2 billion a year for tactical aircraft development and procurement between now and 2027.

☆ Russia is holding back on using its most advanced fighter jets over Ukraine because it's scared they will get shot down, UK intel says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russia is using its most advanced combat jets against Ukraine, British intelligence said Monday. But the jets are only firing missiles into Ukraine from Russian territory, the brief added. Russia is keeping them back over worries about "reputational damage" if they're shot down, it said. In its latest intelligence update, the UK's Ministry of Defence said Moscow has "almost certainly" used Su-57 Felon fighter jets to conduct missions against Ukraine since at least June 2022. "These missions have likely been limited to flying over Russian territory, launching long-range air-to-surface or air-to-air missiles into Ukraine," the brief said.

☆ See inside the world's largest purpose-built private jet, which can cost over $10,000 per hour to rent and fly at near-supersonic speeds
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Taylor Rains | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

However, in reality, eight sleepers would require six people to be family members or in couples as three are double beds. Otherwise, five people can sleep comfortably — two in the single beds and one in each double. The Gulfstream (pictured) has similar seats that convert into beds. Taylor Rains/Insider

☆ Blasts reported at Russian air base where satellite images showed an 'unusual' amount of activity
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Explosions were reported Monday at a military air base inside Russia. Last week, Der Spiegel reported that an "unusual" amount of activity was occurring at the base. The Russian Ministry of Defense later issued a statement attributing the blasts a Ukrainian attack. Images posted Monday by the commercial satellite firm Maxar shows the base hosting the Tu-160 as well as the Tu-95, or Bear, strategic bomber. The base is also home to strategic bombers.

☆ Planemakers like Airbus and Embraer are envisioning a future where the airliner looks radically different — take a look at futuristic the concepts
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Taylor Rains | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

But, the aviation sector may also see other revolutionary planes hit the market in the next decade or two, like supersonic and hydrogen-powered jets. Take a look at the aircraft of the future.

☆ An often overlooked Swedish fighter may be the jet Ukraine needs to take on Russia now, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Constantine Atlamazoglou | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The Saab JAS 39 Gripen fighter jet has earned high marks for its capabilities and affordability. But buyers have often passed on the Gripen in favor of other jets, including the US-made F-35. A Saab JAS 39C Gripen jet during an air show in June 2011. US Air Force F-16s with Swedish air force JAS 39 Gripens over the Baltic Sea during an exercise in June 2018. A new Brazilian Air Force F-39E Gripen at an air base in Brasilia in October 2020.

☆ New space observatory helps solve mystery involving enormous black holes
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Most galaxies are built around humongous black holes. A light year is the distance light travels in a year, 5.9 trillion miles (9.5 trillion km). They have the biggest, scariest black holes. IXPE, launched last December as a collaboration between the U.S. space agency NASA and the Italian Space Agency, measures the brightness and polarization — a property of light involving the orientation of the electromagnetic waves — of X-ray light from cosmic sources. “Black holes are unique laboratories to study fundamental physics in extreme conditions we cannot replicate on Earth,” Liodakis said.

☆ Kim Jong Un reveals daughter at North Korea ballistic missile test
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-19 | by ( Leila Sackur | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

A new ballistic missile with the range to hit all of the United States is a hard thing to upstage. But North Korean leader Kim Jong Un did just that with a surprise guest at the test-launch: his little-known daughter. Kim revealed his daughter to the world for the first time Saturday in images showing the pair hand-in-hand at the missile launch site, an unexpected appearance that raises the prospect of a fourth generation of Kims taking leadership of the secretive state — and its growing nuclear arsenal. North Korean state media said Saturday that Kim had observed the launch of the state’s new type of intercontinental ballistic missile with his wife, Ri Sol Ju, other officials, and his “beloved daughter” the previous day. Kim said the launch of the nuclear-capable Hwasong-17 missile proved he has a reliable weapon to contain U.S-led military threats, and the U.S. responded by flying supersonic bombers in a show of force.

☆ Kim Jong Un reveals his daughter to the world at latest ballistic missile launch
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-19 | by ( Leila Sackur | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Experts say images of Kim and his daughter are for elite consumption, and could symbolise Kim priming his daughter to be the next supreme leader STR / AFP - Getty ImagesA new ballistic missile with the range to hit all of the United States is a hard thing to upstage. But North Korean leader Kim Jong Un did just that with a surprise guest at the test-launch: his little-known daughter. North Korean state media said that Kim had observed the launch of the state's new type of intercontinental ballistic missile with his wife, Ri Sol Ju, other officials, and his "beloved daughter" on Friday. It was the latest escalation in months of provocations from Pyongyang, but attention was suddenly focused on the daughter whose existence had never been publicly confirmed before. It is the first confirmed public appearance of a child of the North Korean leader, whose personal life remains shrouded in mystery.

New Delhi CNN Busines —Indian startup Skyroot Aerospace launched the country’s first privately developed rocket, Vikram-S, into space on Friday with support from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Until now, the country’s space industry has been dominated by the state-run ISRO, but Skyroot Aerospace has opened up the sector to private companies. This mission symbolizes not just India’s first private rocket launch but also “the potential of new India,” said Pawan Kumar Chandana, co-founder of Skyroot Aerospace after the launch. Skyroot Aerospace was launched in 2018 and is based in the southern tech hub of Hyderabad. Last year, it became the first startup to enter into an agreement with ISRO to use the Indian space agency’s expertise and to access facilities.

☆ North Korea fires ballistic missile as it vows ‘fiercer’ military response to U.S. and allies
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea launched a short-range ballistic missile toward its eastern waters on Thursday, South Korea’s military said, hours after the North threatened to launch “fiercer” military responses to the U.S. bolstering its security commitment to its allies South Korea and Japan. It said South Korea has strengthened its surveillance of North Korea while maintaining military readiness in close coordination with the United States. It was North Korea’s first ballistic missile firing in eight days and the latest in its barrage of tests in recent months. North Korea previously said some of the tests were simulations of nuclear attacks on South Korean and U.S. targets. Many experts say North Korea would eventually want to enhance its nuclear capability to wrest bigger concessions from its rivals.

☆ This company wants to make air travel sustainable
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Clare Duffy Cnn Business Video John General | Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Already, some of the world’s biggest airlines are signing on to Air Company’s vision. Jet Blue Ventures, the airline’s investment arm, also invested directly in Air Company’s $30 million Series A funding round earlier this year. Air Company's carbon-neutral, CO2-derived fuel was successfully used in August 2022 during a test flight in partnership with the US Air Force. Air Company“How we think about what the company does is trying to solve humanity’s toughest problems,” Gregory Constantine, co-founder and CEO of Air Company, told CNN in an interview last month. But Air Company’s production process starts by pulling harmful carbon emissions out of the air.

☆ North Korea fires ballistic missile toward sea, South says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea fired at least one ballistic missile toward its eastern sea on Wednesday as it extended a recent barrage of weapons demonstrations including what it described as simulated attacks on South Korean and U.S. targets last week. Some experts earlier said the results of the U.S. elections were not likely to change the Biden administration’s policies on North Korea. North Korea fired dozens of missiles last week, including an intercontinental ballistic missile that set off evacuation warnings in northern Japan, in an angry reaction to the U.S.-South Korea military exercises. Some experts say it’s possible that North Korea reached into the inventory of some of its older weapons to support the expanded scale of last week’s launches. “It may be in North Korea’s interest to hold some of its modern capabilities in reserve and test them at opportune occasions.

☆ North Korea says missile tests were practice to attack South and U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea’s military said Monday its recent barrage of missile tests were practice to “mercilessly” strike key South Korean and U.S. targets such as air bases and operation command systems with a variety of missiles that are likely nuclear-capable. Almost all other North Korean missiles launched last week were likely short-range, many of them nuclear-capable weapons. They place key military targets in South Korea, including U.S. military bases there, within striking range. Later Monday, South Korea’s military disputed some of the North’s accounts of its missile tests. On Saturday, the final day of the air force exercises, the United States flew two B-1B supersonic bombers over South Korea in a display of strength against North Korea, the aircraft’s first such flyover since December 2017.

☆ North Korea fires more missiles as U.S. flies bombers over South
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The South Korean military said two B-1B bombers trained with four U.S. F-16 fighter jets and four South Korean F-35 jets during the last day of the "Vigilant Storm" joint air force drills that wraps up Saturday. It said North Korea will respond with the "toughest counteraction" to any attempts by "hostile forces" to infringe on its sovereignty or security interests. South Korea also on Friday scrambled about 80 military aircraft after tracking about 180 flights by North Korean warplanes inside North Korean territory. North Korea has launched dozens of ballistic missiles this year, including multiple ICBMs and an intermediate-range missile flown over Japan. South Korean officials say there are indications North Korea in coming weeks could detonate its first nuclear test device since 2017.

☆ Russian jets have crashed into apartment buildings twice in less than a week, highlighting Putin's military struggles at home
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A Russian warplane crashed in Siberia on Sunday, killing both pilots. The crash was the second time in less than a week a Russian military aircraft slammed into a residential area, causing fatalities. The deadly crashes come as Russia's military also struggles abroad in its fight in Ukraine. It's the second time in less than a week that a Russian warplane crashed into a residential area, resulting in fatalities. Some casualty estimates for the Russian military in Ukraine are as high as 90,000.

☆ The world's largest jet engine maker confirms it won't develop supersonic engines for Boom, leaving the startup with few options
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Taylor Rains | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

CFM International told media on Sunday that the company has no plans to build a supersonic engine for Boom. Colorado-based startup Boom Supersonic is developing an ultra-high-speed jet, known as Overture, that could catapult travelers from New York to London in less than four hours. But, there is one problem — no engine makers want to help Boom create a supersonic engine. Engine maker Rolls-Royce was at one point a contender, having signed an "engagement agreement" with Boom in 2020 to look into a supersonic engine. However, if Boom is able to pull off creating a supersonic engine, it could give the company a big advantage in the industry.

☆ Chinese scientists say they're working on an anti-ship missile that can fly as high as an airliner and dive as deep as a submarine
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Chinese scientists say they're working on a ultra-fast weapon that is both missile and torpedo. It will fly at supersonic speeds and use supercavitation to reach high underwater speeds, they say. But the Chinese weapon appears to be a missile that turns into a rocket-propelled torpedo once it hits the water. In the 1950s, the US Air Force and Navy examined boron-based jet fuel — "zip fuel" — for aircraft such as the proposed B-70 supersonic bomber. A visitor tours a torpedo room in a submarine that served the Chinese Navy in 1960s at a Navy museum in Qingdao in September 2012.

☆ Russian fighter plane crashes into apartments in southern city near Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

YEYSK, Russia, Oct 17 (Reuters) - A Russian fighter plane crashed into a residential building in the southern Russian city of Yeysk on Monday, engulfing apartments in flames, the regional governor said. Governor Veniamin Kondratyev said the plane was a Sukhoi Su-34, a supersonic medium-range fighter-bomber. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterRIA news agency said it crashed during a training flight from a military airfield. Yeysk is separated from occupied Russian territory in southern Ukraine by a narrow stretch of the Sea of Azov. The incident comes nearly eight months after Russia sent troops into Ukraine.

☆ Felix Baumgartner: 10 years on, the man who fell to Earth is still awed by experience
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Alasdair Howorth | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —After six years of preparation, struggle and sacrifice, Felix Baumgartner found himself quite literally on the edge of the world. “I’m standing there on top of the world outside of a capsule in space and in the stratosphere. "The only thing that I didn't know when I landed was: did I break the speed of sound," says Baumgartner. “Once I was on my way, I slowly started to spin in one direction, then I start spinning in the opposite direction, and then I really started spinning faster and faster and faster,” Baumgartner explained. I was reconnected to the outside world, and that was a very happy moment.

☆ These are the 20 best airlines in the world, according to one survey of travelers: See the full list
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Taylor Rains | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Qatar also won titles for having the world's best business class, the best business class seat, and the best business class lounge dining, according to the Skytrax survey. Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines earned two titles, including the best low-cost airline in both North America and the US. Here's a closer look at the world's Top 20 best carriers for 2022, according to Skytrax's survey of travelers. Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty ImageTurkish Airlines is based in Istanbul and flies routes throughout Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and South America. Qatar AirwaysDoha-based Qatar Airways is the world's best airline, according to survey data collected by Skytrax.

☆ Supersonic jet startup Boom's future is in doubt after every major jet-engine maker refuses to help
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-18 | by ( Taylor Rains | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Travel analyst Henry Harteveldt told Insider that Boom may build its own engine, which could be advantageous. However, Rolls-Royce told AIN Online in early September that it has since left the table. "We've completed our contract with Boom and delivered various engineering studies for their Overture supersonic program," Rolls-Royce said. "As a practice, we avoid commenting on any ongoing and confidential negotiation with our suppliers, until both sides are ready to announce jointly," Boom told Insider on Friday. "However, we can reconfirm our intention to announce Boom's selected engine partner and transformational approach for reliable, cost-effective, and sustainable supersonic flight, later this year."

☆ The B-52 was designed in a hotel room over a weekend in 1948, and it may still be flying 100 years later
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-16 | by ( Alex Hollings | Sandboxx News | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

That design emerged from a hastily arranged work session in a Dayton hotel over a weekend in 1948. The B-52 started flying when America was still relying on P-51 MustangsUS Air Force F-51D Mustang fighters during the Korean War. Spanning wars and altitudesA US Air Force B-52F dropping 750-pound bombs over Vietnam in the 1960s. US Air ForceIn July 1948, Boeing received a contract from the still-new US Air Force to design and build a new heavy bomber. By late Friday night, the new B-52 bomber was already coming into focus.

☆ 2 of Russia's most modern multi-role fighters are leading Putin's air war over Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-14 | by ( Sebastian Roblin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

Two of Russia's most modern fighters have led its air war over Ukraine: the Su-30SM and the Su-35S. Two of Russia's most modern multi-role fighters have spearheaded Moscow's air war over Ukraine: the two-seat Sukhoi Su-30SM (code-named Flanker-H by NATO) and its successor, the single-seat Su-35S Flanker-E. Su-35S units active in UkraineSu-35S jet fighter of the Russian Air Force taking off, Kubinka, Russia. Artyom Anikeev/Stocktrek Images via Getty ImagesThe Russian Air Force (VKS) is currently receiving the last of 128 Su-35s ordered, most now committed to the war in Ukraine. Russia evidently lacks enough longer-range/endurance surveillance and combat drones to hunt Ukrainian air defense assets through laborious optical scanning.

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