LandSpace’s Zhuque-3 topples following milestone landing
Chinese commercial launch provider LandSpace achieved a significant milestone with its Zhuque-3 rocket's first stage, though the vehicle subsequently tipped over following the landing event.
August 23, 2026
On August 16, 1960, as Joe Kittinger’s balloon carried him past 100,000 feet toward the edge of space, a seal in his right glove failed and his bare hand began to swell inside the near-vacuum — he told no one on the ground and jumped anyway
Historical account of Joe Kittinger's 1960 high-altitude balloon jump attempt, during which he experienced a pressure suit glove failure at 100,000+ feet but proceeded with the jump without alerting ground crew, pushing the boundaries of human spaceflight and altitude records.
NASA’s astronaut interviews are only part of the test: finalists also face hours of psychological assessment, time pressure and cognitively punishing team simulations while specialists watch how they communicate, adapt and regulate themselves—the qualities that determine whether a crew remains functional after months of isolation in space.
NASA's astronaut selection process includes extensive psychological testing and high-stress team simulations alongside interviews, evaluating candidates' communication, adaptability, and self-regulation for long-duration spaceflight missions.
Cobra 600 Air Defense Drone Completes First Flight
Polaris's Cobra 600, a jet-powered unmanned air defense system armed with IRIS-T air-to-air missiles, has completed its maiden flight following its debut at ILA Berlin. The German-developed platform represents a new approach to airborne air defense capabilities.
Argentina Abandons Efforts to Return Super Étendard Fighters to Service
Argentina has decided to retire its Super Étendard fighter jets rather than return them to service, ending the aircraft's nearly four-decade operational history that included combat use during the 1982 Falkland Islands conflict.
Norway Approved for 21 UH-60M Black Hawks After Reversing Plans for HH-60W
The U.S. approved a $2.3 billion foreign military sale of up to 21 UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters to Norway, following the country's reversal of plans to acquire HH-60W Jolly Green II aircraft.
Oregon Warns Drone Pilots: One Flight Can Ground Every Fire Aircraft
Oregon authorities alert drone operators that unauthorized drone flights near wildfires can force grounding of all firefighting aircraft, as unauthorized drone incidents reached 67 in 2026.
20th Annual Electric Aircraft Symposium Breaks Records
The Electric Aircraft Symposium attracted record attendance with nearly 200 participants and 47 speakers discussing advanced air mobility, electric propulsion technologies, and related FAA regulatory frameworks.
On this day in space! Aug. 23, 1961: Ranger 1's botched space launch
NASA's Ranger 1 spacecraft launch on August 23, 1961, was intended to test technologies for future lunar missions but encountered launch difficulties, marking an early chapter in the U.S. robotic moon exploration program.
Bad weather delays launch of China's historic Chang'e 7 mission to moon's south pole
China's Chang'e 7 lunar south pole mission has been delayed due to adverse weather conditions at the launch site, with no new launch date yet confirmed.
The United States recorded 178 rocket launches in 2025. Trump’s new national space policy directs American ranges to support more than 1,000 launches and reentries annually by 2030—an average of nearly three spaceflight operations every day.
The Trump administration's new space policy aims to enable U.S. launch ranges to support over 1,000 annual rocket launches and reentries by 2030, nearly tripling the 2025 baseline of 178 launches.
Small seaplane crashes in woods near St. John’s, N.L., injuring both men on board
A small seaplane crashed into woodland near St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, injuring both occupants in the accident.
Hybrid-Electric Demonstration Flights Held Across Three States
The FAA and DOT partnered with Electra to conduct hybrid-electric demonstration flights across Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Virginia, connecting regional airports to major hubs to gather data for safe Advanced Air Mobility integration.
NASA Highlights Next-Gen Cargo Landers Paving the Way for a Moon Base
NASA is advancing commercial cargo lander development to support sustained lunar operations and eventual permanent human presence on the Moon, with plans to provide regular progress updates on these initiatives.
The Artemis II rocket and spacecraft took nearly 12 hours to crawl four miles to their launchpad at less than 1 mph—then, after carrying four astronauts around the Moon, the Orion capsule returned to Earth at nearly 25,000 mph, more than 30,000 times faster.
Artemis II's Space Launch System completed a multi-hour crawl to the launchpad before successfully executing a lunar mission, with the Orion capsule returning to Earth at extreme velocities before parachute deployment.
Launching 10,000 tiny 'femtosats' to Saturn? NASA funds 18 futuristic spaceflight ideas
NASA awarded funding to 18 innovative spaceflight technology concepts through its Advanced Concepts program, including proposals involving miniaturized satellites and missions to Saturn.
Voyager 2’s three surviving instruments are part of humanity’s only direct scientific presence in interstellar space—and with no approved successor under development, engineers remotely reconfigured the 49-year-old probe’s power system in July 2026, completing a delicate operation across a 39-hour command-and-response delay that should preserve its science for at least another year.
NASA engineers successfully reconfigured Voyager 2's power system remotely in July 2026, extending the 49-year-old interstellar probe's operational lifespan by at least another year. The delicate operation preserved the spacecraft's three remaining instruments studying magnetic fields, plasma waves, and cosmic rays beyond the heliopause.
Microlight Aircraft of New Zealand - Delore Trikes - ZK-Exx Registered Machines
Article documents the history of Delore trikes, locally designed and built microlight aircraft in New Zealand, with the first registration occurring in April 1982.
OWL launches GA730LR radar for C-UAS, UTM and BVLOS applications
OWL has introduced the GA730LR radar system for counter-UAS, airspace management, and beyond-visual-line-of-sight operations, expanding its surveillance capabilities for low-altitude airspace monitoring.
Airborne 08.21.26: Electric Swift, Aussie Carbon Cub Flt, Pilot Misconduct
Whisper Aero achieved initial crewed flights of its eQ250 electric ducted-fan propulsion system. Coverage includes hydrogen-powered aircraft research, Virgin Galactic developments, and aviation safety incidents.
Airborne-Innovation 08.18.26: 1st Flt: Heart X1, US Drone Bans, Catapult Chaos
Heart Aerospace successfully completed the first flight of its X1 demonstrator, reportedly the largest battery-electric aircraft to date. The digest also covers drone policy, military rotorcraft developments, and counter-drone technology.
U.S. Navy Reveals AIM-424 “Malice” Long-Range Air-to-Air Missile
The U.S. Navy has unveiled the AIM-424 'Malice' long-range air-to-air missile, a next-generation weapon system revealed at the Tailhook Symposium in August 2026.
Saab fighter drone: Bombardier’s next defence move?
Could A3-001 become Bombardier’s next military-aircraft opportunity? Saab fighter drone: According to The Aviationist’s report, Saab unveiled A3-001, a full-scale model of a low-observable autonomous combat aircraft, to media on August 21, 2026. Then Saab placed the concept on public display at Malm…
August 22, 2026
A microwave-oven-sized experiment inside NASA’s Perseverance rover made history in 2021 by extracting oxygen from Mars’s carbon-dioxide atmosphere—the first demonstration of producing a usable resource from the environment of another planet.
NASA's MOXIE experiment aboard the Perseverance rover successfully demonstrated oxygen extraction from Mars's CO2 atmosphere in 2021, marking the first in-situ resource utilization on another planet and producing 5.4 grams in its initial operation.
AIM-424 “Malice” Very Long-Range Air-To-Air Missile Emerges From The Shadows
The U.S. Navy has unveiled the AIM-424 'Malice' extreme-range air-to-air missile, designed for integration with the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, F-35C, and future F/A-XX fighter aircraft.
TEKEVER to supply AR5 UAS to Portuguese Air Force for maritime surveillance
Portuguese Air Force has contracted TEKEVER to supply AR5 medium-altitude long-endurance unmanned aerial systems for maritime surveillance and defense operations, including ground control stations.
BOC Aviation posts 1H net profit of US$357 million
BOC Aviation reported record first-half 2026 net profit of US$357 million, marking 4% growth. The aircraft leasing company continues to demonstrate strong financial performance in the aviation sector.
Airline News in Brief 23 August 2026
Korean Air is launching a new non-stop route between Seoul Incheon and Melbourne, operating three times weekly from December 2026 through March 2027, expanding its regional network.
Japan’s SkyDrive signs eVTOL agreement with Gold Coast Helitours
Japan-based SkyDrive signed a Letter of Intent with Gold Coast Helitours for purchase of up to five eVTOL aircraft, advancing electric vertical takeoff aviation capabilities in Australian operations.
Vaisala confirms airport weather modernisation project in Indonesia
Vaisala secured a €25 million contract to modernize weather systems and equipment across 14 Indonesian airports, enhancing meteorological infrastructure and flight operations safety.