INDUSTRY NEWS

Airbus starts construction of A220 manufacturing facility – Airbus has begun the construction of its A220 aircraft manufacturing facility at the Mobile Aeroplex at Brookley in Alabama. The facility is situated adjacent to the Airbus A320 family production line and will facilitate the assembly of A220-100 and A220-300 aircraft for U.S. customers. Airbus is expected to complete the new A220 production facilities next year. The company also plans to start the production of aircraft at the facility in the third quarter of this year and aims to deliver the first model in 2020. Once completed, Airbus’ new facility in Mobile will be the company’s second commercial aircraft production facility based in the U.S. ...

Germany officially knocks F-35 out of consideration to replace Tornado – Germany’s has officially ruled out the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter as a choice to replace its aging Tornado fleet. The move is not altogether surprising. Berlin for some time has officially favored an upgraded version of the fourth-generation Eurofighter Typhoon, built by a consortium of Airbus, Leonardo, and BAE Systems, as the Tornado replacement. The main argument is to keep European companies involved in building combat aircraft and, perhaps even more importantly, staying clear of disturbing Franco-German momentum in armaments cooperation. However, the decision leaves open the question of certification for nuclear weapons. The Typhoon is not certified to carry the American-made nuclear bombs that Germany, as part of its strategic posture, is supposed to be able to carry on its jets. Competing against the Typhoon is Boeing’s F/A-18E/F Super Hornet ...

Telesat selects Blue Origin to launch new LEO satellite – Telesat has signed a multi-launch agreement with Blue Origin to send its low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation into space. As part of the deal, Blue Origin will use its New Glenn rocket to deploy the satellites, which are expected to provide fiber-like broadband services across Earth once launched. The reusable New Glenn heavy-lift rocket is designed to send people and payloads to Earth orbit and beyond. Powered by seven BE-4 engines, the rocket can deploy 45t in payloads to LEO. Telesat’s upcoming LEO constellation will be based on the company’s new, patent-pending orbital design and global priority spectrum rights, and advanced antenna, digital processing, optical link, and manufacturing technologies.