News archive: Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems | Airframer

7 October

Talon Blue completed taxi, take-off, in-flight manoeuvres and landing on its first autonomous flight.

Northrop Grumman’s YFQ-48A Talon Blue completes first fully autonomous flight

Reduced part count and weight underpin an aircraft designed for faster production to meet growing demand for autonomous systems among US and allied partners.

28 May

WMI gains follow-on contract for E-2D welded assemblies

Welding Metallurgy, Inc. will manufacture more than 20 different complex welded assemblies in support of the production of E-2D program with deliveries through 2028.

21 May

Mojave ground trials have supported continued testing and development of Northrop Grumman’s autonomous wingman aircraft.

Crane supplies brake controls for Northrop wingman

Brake control technology backed Northrop Grumman’s YFQ-48A Talon Blue taxi trials as autonomous wingman development work continues in California.

19 May

ReleaseTouchstone Advanced Composites, a Core Natural Resources Company, supports development of Northrop Grumman's YFQ-48A Talon Blue autonomous aircraft

27 April

ReleaseSOJA Ventures invests in future of flight by participating in JetZero Series B financing alongside Marquee backers

17 April

ReleaseRTX's Pratt & Whitney engine powers Northrop Grumman's YFQ-48A Talon Blue autonomous wingman

19 March

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman’s Talon IQ flies Shield AI’s Hivemind software

20 February

ReleaseEmbraer and Northrop Grumman jointly developing advanced air mobility capabilities for U.S. and allied nations

19 February

Hivemind enables unmanned defence systems to sense, decide and act without human intervention.

Shield AI advances US Air Force CCA mission autonomy

The company’s Hivemind software integrates with Anduril’s Fury aircraft and advances system testing ahead of planned flight demonstrations.

15 January

One centre fuselage is produced every 30 hours on the Palmdale assembly line.

Northrop Grumman delivers 1,500th F-35 centre fuselage from Palmdale

The use of automated AR and VR tools has helped to reduce build time and training ramp-up on a production line supporting all three aircraft variants.

8 January

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman to rapidly develop Marine Corps CCA with Kratos’ Valkyrie UAS

4 December

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman reveals ‘Project Talon’: the Autonomous Wingman

20 November

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman celebrates 30 years of collaboration with Potez Aéronautique on E-2 Hawkeye

14 August

ReleaseMerlin to go public via business combination with Inflection Point-led SPAC as leading defense prime contractor for AI in aviation

7 August

Beacon brings together flight-proven software and hardware with partner technologies to test autonomous systems in real-world mission scenarios.

Six partners aboard for Beacon autonomy testbed trials

Flight trials on the Scaled Composites Model 437 aircraft and Northrop Grumman hardware will begin this year using autonomy software from partners including Applied Intuition and Shield AI.

31 July

Red 6 is providing augmented reality training tools to simulate high-threat mission environments on the Beacon platform.

Merlin and Red 6 join forces with Northrop Grumman on Beacon

Two companies will support autonomy testing on the Vanguard using software and augmented reality tools in Mojave, California.

2 July

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman leverages advanced tech to build all three F-35 Lightning II variant center fuselages

6 February

ReleaseAustralian MQ-4C Triton program on track and preparing next aircraft for delivery

26 September

The B-21 Raider flight test performance data continues to align with digital model predictions.

Testing continues apace as Raider lives up to digital promise

Northrop Grumman's CTF team has demonstrated it can execute multiple flight test events within the span of a week. The company's digital ecosystem is enabling test data analysis, updates and rapid return to flight test.

29 May

ANCILLARY design concept renderings from all six performers, clockwise from lower left: Sikorsky, Karem Aircraft, Griffon Aerospace, Method Aeronautics, AeroVironment and Northrop Grumman.

DARPA shows concepts for the future of VTOL uncrewed aerial systems

In Phase Ib, six companies - AeroVironment, Griffon Aerospace, Karem Aircraft, Method Aeronautics, Northrop Grumman and Sikorsky - will mature their X-plane designs.

23 May

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman’s B-21 Raider continues its flight test campaign

22 May

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman's autonomous VTOL X-Plane advances to next design phase for DARPA

13 September

Specialist welding equipment secures E-2D capability for AI

Welding complements the vertical integration of other processes such as painting, which Air Industries has recently brought in-house, in a strategy designed to shorten production times and reduce costs.

12 September

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman's B-21 Raider continues progression to flight test

24 August

Jet Zero has selected Pratt & Whitney GTF engines to power the demonstrator.

Air Force investment boosts development of BWB project

JetZero is collaborating with Northrop Grumman and Scaled Composites to build and test a full-scale demonstrator of its blended wing body aircraft design, scheduled to fly by 2027.

19 July

The UAS would be able to launch and recover from ship flight decks and small austere land locations in adverse weather without additional infrastructure equipment.

DARPA tasks Northrop Grumman with naval VTOL design

Northrop Grumman has been entrusted with the task to design an autonomous vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) uncrewed aircraft system capable of operating from a moving Navy ship at sea.

22 June

ReleaseANCILLARY project selects teams to develop initial concepts for VTOL X-Plane

13 March

ReleaseSolar Atmospheres South Carolina facility awarded Northrop Grumman approval

7 December

Northrop Grumman and the U.S. Air Force have introduced the B-21 Raider, the world’s first sixth-generation aircraft.

Northrop Grumman takes the wraps off the B-21 Raider

The B-21 is capable of networking across the battlespace to multiple systems, and into all domains. It can quickly evolve through rapid technology upgrades that provide new capabilities to outpace future threats.

20 September

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman to unveil the B-21 Raider

15 September

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman unveils first Australian MQ-4C Triton

6 September

ReleaseBoeing demonstrates open autonomy architecture for manned-unmanned teaming with MQ-25

26 May

The next steps will include carrying out engine runs as well as low-speed and high-speed taxi tests, and then on to first flight.

Raider aircraft testing proves value of digital modelling

Northrop Grumman is paving the way for the B-21 rollout later this year and first flight in 2023. The first loads calibration test has been undertaken, proving the efficacy of the company's digital design capabilities.

18 May

The ThinKom ThinAir Ka2517 phased array.

Northrop Grumman adds ThinKom antenna to Triton

Initial flights of the MQ-4C flying test bed - an adapted Gulfstream jet - with the ThinKom phased-array satellite antenna are expected to take place in the second quarter of 2022.

16 February

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman delivers 900th F-35 centre fuselage

21 January

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman reaches E-2D manufacturing milestone

22 December

Australia’s first MQ-4C Triton fuselage is lowered onto the unique one-piece wing.

Australia's first MQ-4C Triton gains wings

The Triton should be flying in Australian skies in 2024. This capability will extend the country's ability to see and understand its maritime approaches to the north and also as far south as Antarctica.

15 September

ReleaseLeonardo and Northrop Grumman join forces on future rotorcraft UAS opportunities

10 May

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman to advance Triton sense and avoid development

16 April

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman completes successful first flight of Japan's RQ-4B Global Hawk

7 April

AME Systems will supply cabling and wiring harnesses associated with the MQ-4C Triton program for the Royal Australian Air Force.

AME Systems gains tick from Northrop Grumman for MQ-4C

AME has joined a growing number of Australian companies supplying components for the Triton system, six or seven of which may be operated by the Royal Australian Air Force.

6 April

ReleaseNorthrop Grumman's optionally-manned Firebird demonstrates operational flexibility

30 July

ReleaseMeggitt PLC signs a three year continuation defence contract with Northrop Grumman Corporation for the supply of fuel bladders

1 July

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