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Category: Aviation

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Record £13.9 billion of R&D funding unveiled to boost innovation, jobs and growth

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    News story

    Record £13.9 billion of R&D funding unveiled to boost innovation, jobs and growth

    Funding outlined to support transformational R&D in areas like life sciences, green energy, engineering and beyond.

    £13.9 billion for research and development to drive growth and innovation.

    • Almost £14 billion of R&D funding allocated to bolster life sciences, green energy, space and beyond to improve lives and grow the economy
    • Investing in public R&D essential to driving our Plan for Change by delivering better public services and opening up business opportunities
    • Blood tests for early dementia diagnosis and world’s most advanced testing facility for wind power among supported projects

    More UK innovators like those developing treatment-transforming dementia tests or building world-leading testing facilities to power a greener planet are being backed through our record £13.9 billion in R&D funding to improve lives and drive our Plan for Change.

    The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) has set out today (Friday 4 April) how it will allocate £13.9 billion in funding for transformational research and development in the next year in areas like life sciences, green energy, engineering and beyond. UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) – the UK’s lead public research funder – will receive £8.8 billion over the next year.

    This funding will drive forward research that could transform lives and help make our NHS fit for the future – like the work on blood tests to diagnose dementia earlier, a disease affecting more than 980,000 people in the UK. Researchers are exploring whether looking for proteins specific to many forms of dementia, alongside a quick and easy test of patients’ cognitive functions, could unlock a fast, cheaper and non-invasive way of diagnosing the disease.

    Public investment in R&D is also central to progress that grows the economy through new jobs and commercial opportunities. Each pound of public R&D investment is also estimated to leverage double in private investment in the long run. Businesses that receive their first R&D grant funding also see jobs and turnover go up by over 20% in the following six years.

    Public R&D funding delivered through UKRI is already supporting teams at the University of Plymouth to tackle the serious global issue of antimicrobial resistance, where bacteria evolve to resist medicines that once killed them – making infections harder to treat, increasing medicine costs for and pressure on our NHS and hitting the economy as more suffer ill health.

    Their discovery of a new antibiotic, Epidermicin, is undergoing trials and has led to spinout company, Amprologix – potentially providing health professionals with a silver bullet in the battle against such bacterial infections, dubbed ‘superbugs’, whilst opening up new commercial opportunities in the UK.

    Similarly, UKRI R&D funding has also proven vital in developing the technologies we need to help position the UK as a clean energy superpower, such as the £86 million in ongoing funding towards building the world’s most advanced wind turbine test facility in Blyth. It is supporting the growth of the wind turbine market, creating local jobs and encouraging investment in the sector.

    Science and Technology Secretary, Peter Kyle, said:

    Our £13.9 billion investment in R&D is ultimately an investment in the future of the UK.

    R&D is essential to fulfilling this government’s Plan for Change – whether in improving lives across the UK and beyond through new life-saving drugs, helping us build a cleaner, greener future or in exploring beyond our planet to unlock new discoveries that keep us healthy, safe and prosperous and much more besides.

    It is also central to creating highly paid jobs and opportunities to set up new businesses across the UK, which will drive the economic growth that is key to supporting our public services and enhancing our daily lives.

    The government is also investing nearly £670 million in space, through the UK Space Agency to help develop the space industry in the UK – employing 50,000 people in the UK – and ensure British companies like Airbus are involved in exploration beyond our planet, putting Britain back into the space race and unlocking new opportunities for discovery that can benefit life on earth.

    For example, up to £160 million of previous investment over the next four years will propel Britain’s position in the global satellite communications market, enhancing high-speed internet access to remote and underserved areas and in turn bridging the digital divide for citizens.

    The Department’s investment in R&D to protect our planet also includes £310 million for the Met Office, which while most well-known for providing accurate weather forecasting for the UK also provides the UK’s most advance climate modelling, which is essential to understanding the extent and impacts of climate change and how it can and will affect all of our lives.

    The allocation of this record £13.9 billion in funding follows the Chancellor’s announcement at the Budget that the government would protect record levels of R&D spending, with £20.4 billion being invested over the coming year across all government departments.

    UKRI CEO, Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser, said:

    Research and innovation play a crucial role in driving sustainable economic growth, creating jobs and improving public services for people across the UK. 

    This allocation safeguards the capability of the UK’s world class research and innovation ecosystem and enables investment to support the government’s five missions. 

    UKRI will use its unique position in the research and innovation system to make smart and strategic investment choices, delivering the best outcomes now and in the future, and making the most effective use of public money.

    Further information

    DSIT media enquiries

    Email press@dsit.gov.uk

    Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 6pm 020 7215 3000

    Updates to this page

    Published 4 April 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sens. Moran, Cantwell Reintroduce Bill to Help U.S. Host Cities Bolster Local Infrastructure Ahead of 2026 World Cup, 2028 & 2034 Olympics

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Kansas – Jerry Moran
    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) – members of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation – reintroduced the Transportation Assistance for Olympic and World Cup Cities Act to provide federal funding for local communities to prepare for transportation demands and ensure the successful movement of fans, workers and goods during the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup, the 2028 Summer Olympics and the 2034 Winter Olympics that will all be held in the United States.
    “It was a tremendous feat to secure a spot as a host city during the 2026 World Cup, and I have no doubt that Kansas City will be a welcoming community for hundreds of thousands of soccer fans from around the world,” said Sen. Moran. “Preparations are already underway for the games, and this legislation will support local community and agency efforts to improve infrastructure to connect fans with businesses, hotels, the airport and other host cities during the World Cup.”
    “With less than 500 days until Seattle hosts its first 2026 World Cup game, we need the Department of Transportation to get in the game and support host cities as they work to showcase the best of American innovation and hospitality,” said Sen. Cantwell. “This bill will help ensure the hundreds of thousands of fans visiting Seattle can get to and from games safely and efficiently by improving coordinated transportation planning across the Pacific Northwest.”
    The United States, Canada and Mexico were selected to host the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup, and 11 U.S. cities are preparing to host World Cup matches, including Kansas City, Seattle, Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, and the San Francisco Bay Area. Transportation demands will increase greatly as host cities and surrounding communities are expecting hundreds of thousands of additional visitors from across the globe during the games. Los Angeles will host the 2028 Olympics and Salt Lake City was selected to host the 2034 Winter Olympics.
    This legislation would create a grant program administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to provide host cities with funding for projects that improve transportation in the region during World Cup or Olympic games. Grants would support permanent transportation projects – building new roads, expanding light rail, purchasing new buses, creating bike lanes, improving existing roads or highways, or making airport terminal improvements. 
    The Transportation Assistance for Olympic and World Cup Cities Act would:
    Provide resources to host cities through grant funding for projects that improve transportation in the region during World Cup or Olympic games, which could include acquiring buses, improving airports, or building roads.
    Allow DOT to provide technical and planning assistance to host cities, states, and tribes within 100 miles of a World Cup or Olympic event to help improve coordination and prepare regional transportation systems for the influx of fans.
    Allow DOT to facilitate sharing public transportation equipment, such as buses, between host cities and other cities, helping reduce costs while meeting transportation demand.
    Direct the Department of Commerce to study the economic impact hosting the World Cup and the Olympics has on travel and tourism in the United States.
    “We are pleased to see this important transportation assistance legislation introduced in support of Kansas City’s World Cup efforts,” said Pam Kramer, Chief Executive Officer of KC2026. “Senator Moran continues to be a leader in transportation, mobility, safety and security in the Kansas City region. This legislation will give much needed support to our efforts to ensure safe and efficient transportation of people and goods throughout the region during the World Cup. More importantly, these investments and support will help us create sustained and lasting impact beyond the World Cup, improving mobility in the region well beyond 2026.”
    “On behalf of the KCATA, we are grateful that Senator Jerry Moran is demonstrating his foresight and leadership by introducing bipartisan legislation that will help us, and other host cities effectively host these games and move people to where they need to be,” said Frank White III, President and CEO of the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA). “The Senator’s outreach and understanding of our needs to serve both visitors and residents will help us with effective planning and preparation to host sizable crowds on our transit systems next summer.”
    “We are excited for the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup to take place in the United States,” said Cindy Parlow Cone, U.S. Soccer Federation President. “We appreciate Senators Moran and Cantwell for introducing legislation to provide the 11 U.S. cities hosting World Cup matches, and the dozens more cities hosting team base camps, fan fests and other events and activities, with the resources they will need to welcome the hundreds of thousands of people that will travel here from around the world.”
    “The USOPC strongly supports the Transportation Assistance for Olympic and World Cup Host Cities Act, and we thank Senators Moran and Cantwell for their leadership on this issue. This legislation is crucial to ensuring the United States is prepared to host the decade of sport ahead, from the 2026 FIFA World Cup to the 2028 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games in Los Angeles and the 2034 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Salt Lake City. This bill will make it possible for cities to enhance their infrastructure and provide a seamless experience for athletes and fans alike. The essential transportation assistance set forward in this bill will help make these global events a success and demonstrate American excellence on the world stage.” – The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee.
    “From ferries to trains, buses to highways, the World Cup will undoubtedly put Washington state’s transportation system to the test,” said Peter Tomozawa, CEO, Seattle FIFA World Cup 26 Organizing Committee. “We appreciate Senator Cantwell’s leadership to provide transportation agencies the support they need so we’re ready to showcase Washington to the world in 2026.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Fischer Ranked in Top 10 Most Effective GOP Senators

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Nebraska Deb Fischer

    U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) was ranked 6th in effectiveness out of 49 Republican senators during the 118th Congress by the Center for Effective Lawmaking.

    Last Congress, Fischer championed and successfully passed nine bills into law, outlined below. Several more of Senator Fischer’s bills received action in committee. Fischer also secured more than three dozen provisions in the Fiscal Year (FY) 24 and FY25 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This included improving the Department of Defense’s management of electronic warfare capabilities, establishing a program of record for the nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile, and establishing programs to help resolve our munitions production crisis.

    “I’ve been elected and re-elected to the Senate three times to get things done for Nebraska. That’s exactly what I did last Congress by passing bills to support law enforcement, restore land to local ownership, strengthen America’s nuclear deterrent, and more. I pledge to continue championing commonsense solutions to make life better, safer, and more prosperous for Nebraskans and our great nation,” said Fischer.

    Here is a summary of the bills Fischer successfully passed into law during the 118th Congress:

    Recruit and Retain Act:
    Addresses staffing shortages nationwide by enhancing law enforcement agencies’ access to federal hiring tools.

    Veteran Improvement Commercial Driver License Act of 2023:
    Creates a path for military veterans to obtain their commercial driver’s licenses more easily, helping them transition from military service to civilian careers.

    Restoring American Deterrence Act of 2024:
    Overhauls U.S. nuclear preparedness and enacts key updates to America’s strategic posture. Contains multiple provisions to ensure that the U.S. can continue to deter China and Russia.

    REEF Act:
    Protects railroad employees by ending government mandated cuts to their unemployment and sickness benefits once and for all.

    Advanced Aviation Act:
    Establishes an Advanced Aviation Steering Committee to improve rulemaking and better coordinate new technologies entering the aviation space.

    Sustain Regional Air Travel Act:
    Directs the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to evaluate the pilot shortage’s impact on rural, regional carriers and recommend concrete ways to address the constraints.

    Winnebago Land Transfer Act:
    Transfers approximately 1,600 acres of land back to the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska that was seized in the 1970s by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

    Swanson and Hugh Butler Reservoirs Land Conveyance Act:
    Transfers the Bureau of Reclamation (BoR) Swanson Reservoir land to Hitchcock County and the BoR Red Willow Reservoir land to Frontier County.

    National Advisory Committee on Indian Education Improvement (NACIE) Improvement Act:
    Gives Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) greater input over federal funding discussions that impact them by requiring at least one of NACIE’s members be the president of a Tribal College or University.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: Appointments to Pharmac Board

    Source: New Zealand Government

    Associate Health Minister with responsibility for Pharmac David Seymour has appointed two new people to the Pharmac Board and reappointed a current member for a second term. 
    Chartered accountant Talia Anderson-Town joined the Board in 2021 and has now been appointed for a further three years. 
    The two new Board members are:

    Lucy Elwood, a lawyer with significant governance and leadership experience including roles as CEO of the Cancer Society of New Zealand and Chair of Rare Disorders NZ
    Anna Adams, a barrister with experience in health law, public policy and regulatory systems. Her previous governance roles have included Board membership of the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand. 

    Other Board members include Chair Paula Bennett, Peter Bramley, and Dr Margaret Wilsher. 
    “Last year in my letter of expectations I made it clear that I want Pharmac to work in partnership with consumers, clinicians, suppliers and the health sector to improve health outcomes for New Zealanders underpinned by robust data and evidence,” says Mr Seymour.
    “I’m confident this board will provide the strategic direction and governance needed to deliver on my expectations for a world class medicines and medical devices agency.”
    He also thanked departing Board member Diana Siew, who steps down this month after a three-year term. 

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: PARLIAMENT QUESTION: THIRD GENERATION METEOROLOGICAL SATELLITE

    Source: Government of India

    Ministry of Earth Sciences

    PARLIAMENT QUESTION: THIRD GENERATION METEOROLOGICAL SATELLITE

    Posted On: 03 APR 2025 6:40PM by PIB Delhi

    The Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) has allocated Rs. 480/- crore and billed for the launch of the Indian National Satellite (INSAT-3DS).

    Currently, INSAT-3DS, along with INSAT-3DR, are in use for operational weather services, and some of the important applications of its products are:

    • Round-the-clock monitoring of severe weather conditions with rapid scan capability. Satellite images are generated every 5 minutes for the area of interest (where the severe weather is prevailing).
    • A satellite visualization tool known as Real-time Analysis of Products and Information Dissemination (RAPID) to visualize and analyze satellite images and derived products as per the user’s choice (https://rapid.imd.gov.in/r2v/).
    • Numerous satellite-derived products and imageries are generated at each 30-minute gap, which is very useful in real-time monitoring the cyclone activity and determination of cyclone track and intensity.
    • During pre-monsoon season thunderstorms and lightning season of March to May, various products like Outgoing Longwave Radiation, Quantitative Precipitation Estimate, Sea Surface Temperature, Insolation, winds, winds derived products, etc. and Temperature, Humidity profiles/Thermodynamic indices etc.) are used for monitoring the movement of convective weather systems.
    • Satellite-derived products are also helpful in monitoring the onset, active, and withdrawal phases of southwest and northeast monsoons. It is also used to monitor and analyse the origin, movement, and possible impact of Western disturbance moving across North India.
    • Data Collection and Dissemination: The satellite’s data relay transponder facilitates efficient collection and distribution of meteorological, hydrological, and oceanographic data from various ground stations, supporting The India Meteorological Department (IMD).
    • Search and Rescue Operations: The satellite has a dedicated search and rescue payload that assists in locating and saving lives during maritime and aviation emergencies. These advancements in INSAT-3DS have strengthened India’s capacity to monitor and predict weather patterns, enabling better preparedness for extreme weather events and contributing to improving agricultural and water management decisions.
    • Meteorological data and products from both the INSATs are also useful in various sectors in real-time:

     

    • Aviation Meteorological services (root forecast, convection cloud development, movement, etc.)
    • Marine weather forecast (convection movements, high /low-pressure zones, winds convergence, divergence, etc.)
    • Power Sector (clouds, convection, etc.)
    • Tourism sector (root, temperature, clouds, dry or moist areas, winds, circulation, etc.)
    • Monitoring severe weather phenomena like intense rainfall episodes, heatwave conditions, cold wave day and night fog, etc.) are easily monitored over the Indian region/neighbouring countries by day and night (24-hour) coverage of satellite data.
    • Special sector images are generated for pilgrimage (Like Amarnathji yatra, Kumbh Mela, Kedarnath Jee yatra, etc.)
    • The accumulated snow-bound area images during winter time are generated for specially monitoring the fresh and old snow and its coverage.
    • Agriculture sector services. Satellite provides better guidance for agro meteorology with the help of many satellite-derived products (like Insolation, Land Surface Temperature, Evapotranspiration, etc.).
    • Renewable energy sector: Satellite-based Winds, clouds, Outgoing longwave radiation, etc., provide an important input to this sector for managing the resources efficiently.
    • Research and development activities. New algorithms and approaches (like AI/ML, deep learning, etc.) are also under development to further streamline the process.
    • Therefore, with the support of INSAT-3DS (which provides advanced imaging and sounding capabilities), weather monitoring service capabilities are enhanced. It offered detailed observations of land and ocean surfaces, real-time data on cloud cover, moisture content, temperature profiles, and other atmospheric parameter which are crucial for weather monitoring.

     

    The INSAT-3D has reached its end of life and has been replaced by the INSAT-3DS, whereas INSAT-3DR is operational in sensing and transmitting meteorological data.

    This information was given by Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, Department of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Department of Space and Department of Atomic Energy, in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today.   

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    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: PARLIAMENT QUESTION: MONSOON FORECAST AND CLIMATE RESILIENCE

    Source: Government of India

    Posted On: 03 APR 2025 6:43PM by PIB Delhi

    The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has adopted a new strategy for issuing monthly and seasonal operational forecasts for the southwest monsoon rainfall over the country based on both the statistical forecasting system and the newly developed Multi-Model Ensemble (MME) based forecasting system. The MME approach uses the coupled global climate models (CGCMs) from different global climate prediction and research centers, including IMD’s Monsoon Mission Climate Forecasting System (MMCFS) model. The MMCFS and MME forecasts are updated every month. This was to satisfy the demands from different users and Government authorities for the forecasts of the spatial distribution of monthly and seasonal rainfall along with the regionally averaged rainfall forecasts for better regional planning of activities.

    Since introducing the Statistical Ensemble Forecasting System (SEFS) in 2007 and implementing the MME approach in 2021 for seasonal forecasting, IMD operational forecast for the monsoon rainfall has shown noticeable improvement. For example, the average absolute forecast error in the forecasting of all India’s seasonal rainfall has reduced by about 21% during the recent 18 years (2007-2024) compared to the same number of  previous years (1989-2006), which indicates a highly successful forecast in recent years compared to previous years. The anomaly correlation between the observed and forecast ISMR during 2007-2023 was 0.55 compared to -0.21 during 1989-2006. It may be noted that IMD was able to correctly forecast the twin deficient monsoon years of 2014-2015, as well as the below-normal rainfall in 2023 and above-normal rainfall in 2024. These clearly indicate improvement made in the operational forecast system in the recent 18 years period compared to the earlier 18 years period. For 2025, the MME approach will continue to be used as this method introduced in 2021 has shown good skill in forecasting both the area-averaged rainfall at various geographical regions and spatial distribution of rainfall across the country at monthly as well as seasonal scales.

    To strengthen weather and climate services for the agriculture sector, the MoES has launched the Mission Mausam, which is envisaged to be a multi-faceted and transformative initiative to boost India’s weather and climate-related science, research, and services. The Mission is launched to make Bharat a weather-ready and climate-smart nation with the aim that no weather will go undetected and early warning for all. It will help monsoon-dependent agricultural regions, citizens, and last-mile users to tackle extreme weather events and the impacts of climate change in a better way.

    Further, the Mission’s focus includes improving the observations by augmenting various observational networks throughout the country to provide highly accurate and timely weather and climate information across temporal and spatial scales, capacity building, and awareness generation. Apart from physics-based numerical models, the Ministry is developing new methods based on artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies for weather, climate, and ocean forecasting systems. And the formulation of collaborative research projects with academic institutions to share knowledge and develop innovative solutions for weather forecasting and climate modeling capabilities. Local user communities such as farmers/agricultural authorities, aviation authorities, power generation & distribution agencies, industries, health agencies, etc., are constantly involved/engaged, and periodic familiarization is imparted through user meet/stakeholder meet awareness programs, etc. The feedback is taken from the communities for the improvement of all-weather & climate services. Extensive use of local languages in forecast dissemination and regularly organizing workshops and awareness programs for community outreach is being undertaken.

    By strengthening the observational network will also help to observe the changes in long-term weather patterns compared to past years to assess the changes in the climate and take measures towards climate resilience.

    The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has been using satellite technology extensively for weather monitoring and forecasting. This started with the use of photographs from Television Infrared Observation Satellites (TIROS-1) launched by the United States of America (USA) in April 1960. These photographs provided new information on cloud systems, including spiral formations associated with large storms, immediately proving their value to operational meteorologists. Over the years, IMD has embraced new developments in satellites and their applications, boosted through global coordination and support, such as geostationary satellites in 1974 and polar-orbiting satellites. With the advent of Indian National Satellites (INSAT) developed by the Space Research Organisation (ISRO) satellites in 1982, IMD has augmented satellite applications utilizing image and data products in collaboration with the ISRO. Currently, IMD is utilizing available international satellites, including European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) and INSAT-3DR/3DS, as well as polar-orbiting satellites, including Oceansat-3 and Metop-B/C. The utilization of satellite data and products has improved nowcasting and severe weather along with timely detection of large-scale systems like monsoon circulation, cyclones, western disturbances, thunderstorms, etc. Above 90% of the data in the numerical models run by the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) is satellite-based. The assimilation of satellite data in the models has improved the accuracy in short to medium range forecasting by about 20% to 30%. Algorithms/tools developed by IMD/ISRO and other international institutes, such as EUMETSAT, like nowcast tools, RAPID, Dvorak technique, etc., have improved decision-making and forecasting. These data and products are proven to be useful for disaster preparedness. However, there are still gaps in detecting small-scale weather events, such as cloudbursts, thunderstorms, localized heavy rainfall, squalls, hail storms, etc., due to a lack of high-resolution data, products, and satellite-based tools. Considering this, IMD and ISRO are working together for the development of the INSAT-4 series with better sensors and resolution.

    This information was given by Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, Department of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Department of Space and Department of Atomic Energy, in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today.   

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    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: PARLIAMENT QUESTION: UPDATES ON THE SPACE APPLICATIONS CENTRE OF ISRO

    Source: Government of India

    Posted On: 03 APR 2025 5:11PM by PIB Delhi

    The genesis of the Centre dates back to 1966, with establishment of the Experimental Satellite Communication Earth Station (ESCES), by late Dr. Vikram A Sarabhai in Ahmedabad. In 1972, the different units of ISRO in Ahmedabad pursuing research in applications of space technology were merged to form Space Applications Centre (SAC). A unique experiment called the Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE) was conducted by SAC/ISRO during 1975-76. Hailed as ‘the largest techno-social experiment in the world’, SITE demonstrated the potential of satellite technology as an effective mass communication media, aimed at socio-economic development of rural India.

    Space Applications Centre (SAC), is a major and unique multi–disciplinary research and development Centre of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). SAC today stands high in each of its endeavour with its strong space research & development capabilities and continues to deliver world-class technologies and applications for various national, strategic, societal and technology demonstration missions of ISRO. These applications are in diverse areas and primarily meet the communication, navigation and remote sensing needs of the country. Located at Ahmedabad, SAC is spread across three campuses having multi-disciplinary activities apart from Delhi Earth Station (DES), which is located in New Delhi.

    SAC has state-of-the-art electronic and mechanical fabrication facilities, highly sophisticated payload integration, climatic & environmental test facilities, systems reliability area, image processing and analysis facilities and project management support group.

    SAC is the lead centre in the development of key payload technologies for Earth Observation, Communication, Navigation and Space Exploration. Further, the Centre also develops various applications that cater to various user ministries in the field of Agriculture, Meteorology, Fisheries, Oceanography, Environment, Forest, Railways, Urban development etc.

    The notable technologies that were developed by the Space Applications Centre for spacecraft payloads including S-Band SAR for NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission, C-Band and X-Band Microwave Radars for RISAT series, Lander/Rover Cameras, Ka Radar Altimeters, Hazard Detection and Avoidance  Sensors for Lunar Landing for Chandrayaan-3, demonstration of spectrum sensing, ADS-B, GNSS-R reflectometry, Pseudolite systems for RLV, High resolution Electro-optical payloads, Ka-band payload for high throughput satellites (50 Gbps), spread-spectrum modems for Gaganyaan crew communication system, Indian Atomic clock-Indian Rubidium Atomic Frequency Standard (IRAFS) for NavIC and Travelling Wave Tube Amplifiers (TWTA) for Communication satellites. Currently, a large number of payloads are under various stages of realization at SAC including, GSAT-7R, HRSAT Series, Resourcesat-3 series, Oceansat-3A, G20- Satellite, Indian Mauritius Joint Satellite (IMJS), GSAT-N3, IDRSS-2, payloads for Quantum Communication.

    Various downstream applications developed and demonstrated for users include National Drought Portal for Krishi-Decision Support System (DSS), application development for Yield Estimation System based on Technology (YES-Tech) program under Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), Geospatial Energy map portal of India, Sea Ice Advisories for polar expedition routes for National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), System for national scale Crop Yield Estimation, Very short range weather forecast, Value added Agro-Met products for Gramin Krishi Mausam Sewa (GKMS), Hybrid weather prediction system for customized station specific weather forecast (transferred to Bihar Mausam Sewa Kendra (BMSK) for operational use), Satellite and in situ based data assimilative technique for ocean wave forecasting (transferred to Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), Hyderabad), High Resolution Rapid Refresh (HRRR) methodology for using Doppler Weather Radars (DWR) data (transferred to India Meteorological Department (IMD), New Delhi), Satellite-based ocean drift model for search and rescue (transferred this application to National Operational Data Processing and analysis Centre (NODPAC)/ Indian Navy, Kochi), Monitoring of fishing boats with keel lengths <24m which is now being rolled-out nationally, Locomotive-mounted satcom terminals for tracking of trains for safety-of-life & train information, real-time aircraft tracking for aviation safety & fleet management, authentication geo-fixes for Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) – Aadhar enrolment operatives, Indus river-level monitoring system, high-accuracy NavIC receivers for e-tolling applications for National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

    SAC objectives are realized and met with a well-planned strategy for a sustained capacity building through skilled human resources, establishment of state-of-the-art facilities, industry and academia participation and international cooperation under a well-defined policy support of ISRO. SAC has been proactively enhancing and upgrading the skills and competencies of internal human resource through standard as well as tailored training and development programs. SAC has systematic capacity enhancement plans at individual level to meet the organizational objectives, which also includes non-training interventions such as conferences, seminars, workshops at national as well as international levels. Higher education in premier academic institutions is also a part of the capacity enhancement strategy.

    SAC has built a strong partnership with over 300 small, medium and large scale industries and commercial organizations specialized in various fields including RF, Digital, Optical, Microwave, Mechanical, Electrical, Antenna, Scientific software, specialized materials etc. are presently associated with SAC. SAC has a well-established academia partnership programs for research in the areas associated with space technology, space science and exploration including RESPOND, STC etc.

    SAC has state-of-the-art highly sophisticated payload integration laboratories, electronic & Mechanical fabrication facilities, environmental test facility, image processing, and analysis facilities.

    SAC has outlined a detailed technology roadmap, as a part of space vision 2047. It is envisioning a new paradigm of space borne observations for Earth system and Planetary studies with special emphasis on developing advanced Radars, LIDAR, Hyperspectral and Terahertz technologies with high quality analysis-ready data products and also advanced techniques for geophysical parameters retrieval and customised web-based solutions to meet various User requirements in the domain of Agriculture, Forestry, Coastal Zone Management, Meteorology, Fisheries, Urban Planning, Oceanography etc.

    SAC has defined roadmap for development of Quantum technologies including Space Based Quantum Communication, Quantum Sensing and Quantum computing.

    SAC has evolved roadmap for competitive & advanced Satellite Navigation (SATNAV) services and achieve larger penetration of NavIC applications across strategic, civilian and scientific domains; secure and self-reliant Satellite Communication (SATCOM) systems and applications; NavCom systems and applications for various Users all of which will be enabled by indigenous technology, products & services and propelled by Indian Industries/NGEs.

    SAC has defined roadmap for state-of-the art capability and self-reliance in design and development of crew centric systems for Human Space Programme and ensure crew safety through specific human-rated R&QA practices.

    This information was given by Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, Department of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Department of Space and Department of Atomic Energy, in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today.   

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    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Video: Protecting America From Above – Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) – Air and Marine Operations | CBP

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    Air and Marine Operations (AMO) UAS is a critical element of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) mission to predict, detect, identify, classify, track, deter, and interdict border traffic that threatens the continuity of U.S. border security. This is an integral capability used to safeguard our homeland through the coordinated application of aviation and maritime law enforcement resources within the air, sea, and land environments. This includes detecting, deterring, and interdicting illicit border crossings; conducting investigative activities; collecting intelligence; and performing reconnaissance patrols.

    Instagram ➤ https://instagram.com/CBPgov
    Facebook ➤ https://facebook.com/CBPgov
    Twitter ➤ https://twitter.com/CBP
    Official Website ➤ https://www.cbp.gov

    #cbp
    #drone
    #bordersecurity
    #lawenforcement
    #security

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYEyD_-mrz0

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI USA: University Student Research Challenge (USRC) Awards

    Source: NASA

    University Student Research Challenge (USRC) seeks to challenge students to propose new ideas/concepts that are relevant to NASA Aeronautics. USRC will provide students, from accredited U.S. colleges or universities, with grants for their projects and with the challenge of raising cost share funds through a crowdfunding campaign. The process of creating and implementing a crowdfunding campaign acts as a teaching accelerator – requiring students to act like entrepreneurs and raise awareness about their research among the public.
    The solicitation goal can be accomplished through project ideas such as advancing the design, developing technology or capabilities in support of aviation, by demonstrating a novel concept, or enabling advancement of aeronautics-related technologies.
    Eligibility: NASA funding is available to all accredited U.S. institutions of higher education (e.g. universities, four-year colleges, community colleges, or other two-year institutions). Students must be currently enrolled (part-time or full-time) at the institution. NASA has no set expectations as to the team size. The number of students participating in the investigation is to be determined by the scope of the project and the student Team Leader.
    The USRC solicitation is currently Closed with Proposals next due June 26, 2025. Please visit NSPIRES to receive alerts when more information is available.
    A USRC Q&A/Info Session and Proposal Workshop will be held May 12, 2025, at 2pm ET ahead of the USRC Submission deadline in June 2025. Join the Q&A
    Please email us at HQ-USRC@mail.nasa.gov if you have any questions or to schedule a 1 on 1.

    Context-Aware Cybersecurity for UAS Traffic Management (Texas A&M University)Developing, testing, and pursuing transition of an aviation-context-aware network authentication and segmentation function, which holistically manages cyber threats in future UAS traffic control systems.Student Team: Vishwam Raval (Team Lead), Michael Ades, Garett Haynes, Sarah Lee, Kevin Lei, Oscar Leon, McKenna Smith, Nhan Nick TruongFaculty Mentors: Jaewon Kim and Sandip RoySelected: 2025

    Reconnaissance and Emergency Aircraft for Critical Hurricane Relief (North Carolina State University)Developing and deploying advanced unmanned aerial systems designed to locate, communicate with, and deliver critical supplies to stranded individuals in the wake of natural disasters.Student Team: Tobias Hullette (Team Lead), Jose Vizcarrondo, Rishi Ghosh, Caleb Gobel, Lucas Nicol, Ajay Pandya, Paul Randolph, Hadie SabbahFaculty Mentor: Felix EwereSelected: 2025

    Design and Prototyping of a 9-phase Dual-Rotor Motor for Supersonic Electric Turbofan (Colorado School of Mines)Designing and prototyping a scaled-down 9-phase dual-rotor motor (DRM) for a supersonic electric turbofan.Student Team: Mahzad Gholamian (Team Lead), Garret Reader, Mykola Mazur, Mirali SeyedrezaeiFaculty Mentor: Omid BeikSelected: 2024

    Project F.I.R.E (Fire Intervention Retardant Expeller) (Cerritos Community College)Mitigating wildfires with drone released fire retardant pellets.Student Team: Angel Ortega Barrera (Team Lead), Larisa Mayoral, Paola Mayoral Jimenez, Jenny Rodriguez, Logan Stahl, Juan VillaFaculty Mentor: Janet McLarty-SchroederSelected: 2024

    Learning cooperative policies for adaptive human-drone teaming in shared airspace (Cornell University)Enabling new coordination and communication models for smoother, more efficient, and robust air traffic flow.Student Team: Mehrnaz Sabet (Team Lead), Aaron Babu, Marcus Lee, Joshua Park, Francis Pham, Owen Sorber, Roopak Srinivasan, Austin ZhaoFaculty Mentor: Sanjiban Choudhury, Susan FussellSelected: 2024Crowdfunding Website

    Investigation on Cryogenic Fluid Chill-Down Time for Supersonic Transport Usage (University of Washington, Seattle)Investigating reducing the boil-off of cryogenic fluids in pipes using vortex generators.Student Team: Ryan Fidelis (Team Lead), Alexander Ala, Kaleb ShawFaculty Mentor: Fiona Spencer, Robert BreidenthalSelected: 2024Crowdfunding Website
    Web Article: “Students win NASA grant to develop AI for safer aerial traffic“

    Clean Forever-Flying Drones: Utilizing Ocean Water for Hydrogen Extraction in Climate Monitoring (Purdue University)An ocean-based fueling station and a survey drone that can refuel in remote areas.Student Team: Holman Lau (Team Lead), Nikolai Baranov, Andrej Damjanov, Chloe Hardesty, Smit KapadiaFaculty Mentor: Li QiaoSelected: 2023Crowdfunding Website

    Intelligent drone for detection of people during emergency response operation (Louisiana State University and A&M College)Using machine learning algorithms for images and audio data, integrated with gas sensing for real-time detection of people on UAS.Student Team: Jones Essuman (Team Lead), Tonmoy Sarker, Samer TahboubFaculty Mentor: Xiangyu MengSelected: 2023Crowdfunding Website

    Advancing Aerospace Materials Design through High-Fidelity Computational Peridynamic Modeling and Modified SVET Validation of Corrosion Damage (California State University, Channel Islands)Modeling electrochemical corrosion nonlocally and combining efforts from bond-based and state-based theory.Student Team: Trent Ruiz (Team Lead), Isaac Cisneros, Curtis HauckFaculty Mentor: Cynthia FloresSelected: 2023Crowdfunding Website

    Swarm Micro UAVs for Area Mapping in GPS-denied Areas (Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University)Using swarm robotics to map complex environments and harsh terrain with Micro Aerial Vehicles (MAVs)Student Team: Daniel Golan (Team Lead), Stanlie Cerda-Cruz, Kyle Fox, Bryan Gonzalez, Ethan ThomasFaculty Mentor: Sergey V. DrakunovSelected: 2023Crowdfunding Website
    Web Article: “Student Research on Drone Swarm Mapping Selected to Compete at NASA Challenge“

    AeroFeathers—Feathered Airfoils Inspired by the Quiet Flight of Owls (Michigan Tech University)Creating new propeller blades and fixed wing design concepts that mimic the features of anowl feather and provide substantial noise reduction benefits.Student Team: William Johnston (Team Lead), Pulitha Godakawela Kankanamalage, Amulya Lomte, Maria Jose Carrillo Munoz, Brittany Wojciechowski, Laura Paige Nobles, Gabrielle MathewsFaculty Mentor: Bhisham SharmaSelected: 2023Crowdfunding Website

    Laser Energized Aerial Drone System (LEADS) for Sustained Sensing Applications (Michigan State University)Laser based, high-efficiency optical power transfer for UAV charging for sustained flight and monitoring.Student Team: Gavin Gardner (Team Lead), Ryan Atkinson, Brady Berg, Ross Davis, Gryson Gardner, Malachi Keener, Nicholas MichaelsFaculty Mentor: Woongkul LeeSelected: 2023Crowdfunding Website
    LEADS team Website

    UAM Contingency Diagnosis Toolkit (Ohio State University)A UAM contingency diagnosis toolkit which that includes cognitive work requirements (CWRs) for human operators, information sharing requirements, and representational designs.Student Team: Connor Kannally (Team Lead), Izzy Furl, Luke McSherry, Abhinay PaladuguFaculty Mentor: Martijn IJtsmaSelected: 2023Crowdfunding Website
    Project Website
    Web Article: “NASA Awards $80K to Ohio State students through University Research Challenge“

    Hybrid Quadplane Search and Rescue Missions (NC A&T University)An autonomous search and rescue quadplane UAS supported by an unmanned mobile landing platform/recharge station ground vehicle.Student Team: Luis Landivar Olmos (Team Lead), Dakota Price, Amilia Schimmel, Sean TisdaleFaculty Mentor: A. HomaifarSelected: 2023Crowdfunding Website

    Drone Based Water Sampling and Quality Testing – Special Application in the Raritan River (Rutgers University, New Brunswick)An autonomous water sampling drone system.Student Team: Michael Leitner (Team Lead), Xavier Garay, Mohamed Haroun, Ruchit Jathania, Caleb Lippe, Zachary Smolder, Chi Hin TamFaculty Mentor: Onur BilgenSelected: 2023Crowdfunding Website
    Project Website

    Development of a Low-Cost Open-Source Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing Machine – Arc One (Case Western Reserve University)A small-scale, modular, low-cost, and open-source Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) platform.Student Team: Vishnushankar Viraliyur Ramasamy (Team Lead), Robert Carlstrom, Bathlomew Ebika, Jonathan Fu, Anthony Lino, Garrett TiengFaculty Mentor: John LewandowskiSelected: 2023Crowdfunding Website
    Web Article: “PhD student wins funding from NASA and develops multidisciplinary team of undergraduate students to build novel machine“

    Low Cost and Efficient eVTOL Platform Leveraging Opensource for Accessibility (University of Nevada, Las Vegas)Lowering the barrier of entry into eVTOL deployment and development with a low cost, efficient, and open source eVTOL platformStudent Team: Martin Arguelles-Perez (Team Lead), Benjamin Bishop, Isabella Laurito, Genaro Marcial Lorza, Eman YonisFaculty Mentor: Venkatesan MuthukumarSelected: 2022

    Applying Space-Based Estimation Techniques to Drones in GPS-Denied Environments (University Of Texas, Austin)Taking real-time inputs from flying drones and outputting an accurate state estimation with 3-D error ellipsoid visualizationStudent Team: James Mitchell Roberts (Team Lead), Lauren Byram, Melissa PiresFaculty Mentor: Adam NokesSelected: 2022Crowdfunding Website
    Project Website
    Web Article: “GPS-free Drone Tech Proposal Lands Undergrads Spot in NASA Challenge“

    Underwing Distributed Ducted Fan ‘FanFoil’ Concept for Transformational Aerodynamic and Aeroacoustic Performance (Texas Tech University, Lubbock)Novel highly under-cambered airfoils with electric ducted fans featuring ’samara’ maple seed inspired blades for eVTOL applicationStudent Team: Jack Hicks (Team Lead), Harrison Childre, Guilherme Fernandes, David Gould, Lorne Greene, Muhammad Waleed Saleem, Nathan ShapiroFaculty Mentor: Victor Maldonado Selected: 2022Crowdfunding Website
    Web Articles: “Improving Ducted-Fan eVTOL Efficiency” (AvWeek), “Sky Taxies“

    Urban Cargo Delivery Using eVTOL Aircrafts (University Of Illinois, Chicago)A bi-objective optimization formulation minimizing total run costs of a two-leg cargo delivery system and community noise exposure to eVTOL operationsStudent Team: Nahid Parvez Farazi (Team Lead), Amy Hofstra, Son NguyenFaculty Mentor: Bo ZouSelected: 2022Crowdfunding Website
    Web Article: “PhD student awarded NASA grant to investigate urban cargo delivery systems“

    Congestion Aware Path Planning for Optimal UAS Traffic Management (University Of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign)A feasible, provably safe, and quantifiably optimal path planning framework considering fully autonomous UAVs in urban environmentsStudent Team: Minjun Sung (Team Lead), Christoph Aoun, Ivy Fei, Christophe Hiltebrandt-McIntosh, Sambhu Harimanas Karumanchi, Ran TaoFaculty Mentor: Naira HovakimyanSelected: 2022Crowdfunding Website
    Web Article: “NASA funds UAV traffic management research“

    AeroZepp: Aerostat Enabled Drone Glider Delivery System / Whisper Ascent: Quiet Drone Delivery (University of Delaware)An aerostat enabled low-energy UAV payload delivery systemStudent Team: Wesley Connor (Team Lead), Abubakarr Bah, Karlens SenatusFaculty Mentor: Suresh AdvaniSelected: 2022Crowdfunding Website

    Sustainable Transport Research Aircraft for Test Operation (STRATO) (Rutgers University, New Brunswick)An open source, efficiently driven, optimized Active Flow Control (AFC) enhanced control surface for UAV research platformsStudent Team: Daulton James (Team Lead), Jean Alvarez, Frederick Diaz, Michael Ferrell, Shriya Khera, Connor Magee, Roy Monge Hidalgo, Bertrand SmithFaculty Mentor: Edward DeMauroSelected: 2022Crowdfunding Website
    Web Articles: “SoE Students Eligible for NASA University Student Research Challenge Award“, “Senior Design Team Captures NASA Research Challenge“
    A recorded STRATO USRC Tech Talk

    Dronehook: A Novel Fixed-Wing Package Retrieval System (University Of Notre Dame)Envisioning a world where items can be retrieved from remote locations in a simple fashion from efficient fixed-wing UAVsStudent Team: Konrad Rozanski (Team Lead), Dillon Coffey, Bruce Smith, Nicholas OrrFaculty Mentor: Jane Cleland-HuangSelected: 2021Crowdfunding Website
    Web Article: “Notre Dame student team wins NASA research award for drone scoop and grab technology“

    Aerial Intra-city Delivery Electric Drones (AIDED) with High Payload Capacity (Michigan State University)A high-payload capacity delivery drone capable of safely latching and charging on electrified public transportation systemsStudent Team: Yuchen Wang (Team Lead), Hunter Carmack, Kindred Griffis, Luke Lewallen, Scott Newhard, Caroline Nicholas, Shukai Wang, Kyle WhiteFaculty Mentor: Woongkul LeeSelected: 2021AIDED Crowdfunding Website
    AIDED Project Website or Team Website
    Web Articles: “Spartan Engineers win NASA research award” and “NASA Aeronautics amplification“; “Ross Davis & Gavin Gardner on The Guy Gordon Show“; “MSU Students Create Delivery Drone for NASA“; “Student drone project flying high with help from NASA“
    A recorded USRC Tech Talk

    Robotic Fabrication Work Cell for Customizable Unmanned Aerial Systems (Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University)A robotic, multi-process work cell to autonomously fabricate topologically optimized UASs tailored for immediate application needsStudent Team: Tadeusz Kosmal (Team Lead), Kieran Beaumont, Om Bhavsar, Eric Link, James LoweFaculty Mentor: Christopher WilliamsSelected: 2021Crowdfunding Website
    RAV-FAB Project Website
    Web Articles: “Drones that fly away from a 3D printer: Undergraduates create science nonfiction” and “3D printing breaks out of the box / VTx / Virginia Tech“
    NASA VT USRC Web Article: “USRC Students Sees Success with Crowdfunding, NASA Grants“
    Publication: Hybrid additive robotic workcell for autonomous fabrication of mechatronic systems – A case study of drone fabrication – ScienceDirect
    Team Social Media: Instagram: @ravfab_vt; LinkedIn: @rav-fab; YouTube
    View RAV-FAB USRC Tech Talk #1 or USRC Tech Talk #2

    Real Time Quality Control in Additive Manufacturing Using In-Process Sensing and Machine Learning (Cornell University)A high-precision and low-cost intelligent sensor-based quality control technology for Additive ManufacturingStudent Team: Adrita Dass (Team Lead), Talia Turnham, Benjamin Steeper, Chenxi Tian, Siddharth Patel, Akula Sai Pratyush, Selina KirubakarFaculty Mentor: Atieh MoridiSelected: 2021Crowdfunding Website
    AMAS Project Website
    Web Article: “Students win NASA challenge with 3D-printer smart sensor“
    A recorded USRC Tech Talk on this topic

    AVIATA: Autonomous Vehicle Infinite Time Apparatus (University of California, Los Angeles)A drone swarm system capable of carrying a payload in the air indefinitelyStudent Team: Chirag Singh (Team Lead), Ziyi Peng, Bhrugu Mallajosyula, Willy Teav, David Thorne, James Tseng, Eric Wong, Axel Malahieude, Ryan Nemiroff, Yuchen Yao, Lisa FooFaculty Mentor: Jeff EldredgeSelected: 2020Crowdfunding Website
    AVIATA Project Website
    A recorded USRC Tech Talk on AVIATA
    The recorded poster session at the TACP Showcase 2021

    Redundant Flight Control System for BVLOS UAV Operations (Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University)A redundant flight control system as a “back-up” to the primary flight computer to enhance safety of sUASStudent Team: Robert Moore (Team Lead), Joseph Ayd, and Todd MartinFaculty Mentor: John RobbinsSelected: 2020Crowdfunding Website
    Web Articles: “NASA Web Article“; “Drone Innovation Top Embry-Riddle Entrepreneurship Competition“
    Follow the team’s progress at: https://www.facebook.com/Assured Autonomy
    A recorded USRC Tech Talk on this topic
    The recorded poster session at the TACP Showcase 2021

    Multi-Mode Hybrid Unmanned Delivery System: Combining Fixed-Wing and Multi-Rotor Aircraft with Ground Vehicles (Rutgers University)Extending drone delivery distance with a multi-mode hybrid delivery systemStudent Team: Paul Wang (Team Lead), Nolan Angelia, Muhammet Ali GungorFaculty Mentor: Onur BilgenSelected: 2020Crowdfunding Website
    A recorded USRC Tech Talk on this topic
    The recorded poster session at the TACP Showcase 2021

    AVIS: Active Vortex Inducing System for Flow Separation Control to Improve Airframe Efficiency (Georgia Institute of Technology)Use an array of vortex generators that can be adjusted throughout flight to increase wing efficiencyStudent Team: Michael Gamarnik (Team Lead), Shiva Khanna Yamamoto, Noah Mammen, Tommy Schrager, Bethe NewgentFaculty Mentor: Kelly GriendlingSelected: 2020Go to AVIS team site
    A recorded USRC Tech Talk on AVIS
    The recorded poster session at the TACP Showcase 2021
    NASA Web Article

    Hybrid Airplanes – An Optimum and Modular Approach (California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo)Model and test powertrain to maximize the efficiency of hybrid airplanesStudent Team: Nicholas Ogden (Team Lead), Joseph Shy, Brandon Bartlett, Ryker Bullis, Chino Cruz, Sara Entezar, Aaron Li, Zach YamauchiFaculty Mentor: Paulo IscoldSelected: 2019A recorded USRC Tech Talk on this topic
    The recorded poster session at the TACP Showcase 2021

    ATLAS Air Transportation (South Dakota State University)A multipurpose, automated drone capable of comfortably lifting the weight of an average personStudent Team: Isaac Smithee (Team Lead), Wade Olson, Nicolas Runge, Ryan Twedt, Anthony Bachmeier, Matthew Berg, Sterling BergFaculty Mentors: Marco Ciarcia, Todd LetcherSelected: 2019A recorded USRC Tech Talk #1 and USRC Tech Talk #2 on ATLAS
    The recorded poster session at the TACP Showcase 2021

    Software-Defined GPS Augmentation Network for UAS Navigation (University Of Oklahoma, Norman)A novel solution of enhanced GPS navigation for unmanned aerial vehiclesStudent Team: Robert Rucker (Team Lead), Alex Zhang, Jakob Fusselman, Matthew GilliamMentors: Dr. Yan (Rockee) Zhang (Faculty Mentor), Dr Hernan Suarez (Team Technical Mentor)Faculty Mentors: Marco Ciarcia, Todd LetcherSelected: 2019Crowdfunding Website
    A recorded USRC Tech Talk on this topic
    The recorded poster session at the TACP Showcase 2021

    UAV Traffic Information Exchange Network (Purdue University)A blockchain-inspired secure, scalable, distributed, and efficient communication framework to support large scale UAV operationsStudent Team: Hsun Chao (Team Lead) and Apoorv MaheshwariFaculty Mentors: Daniel DeLaurentis (Faculty Mentor), Shashank TamaskarSelected: 2018Web Article: “Student-developed communication network for UAVs interests NASA“The recorded poster session at the TACP Showcase 2021

    University Student Research Challenge
    University Leadership Initiative
    University Innovation Project
    Transformative Aeronautics Concepts Program

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Impact of the new sanctions on Russia – E-000807/2025(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    The EU has so far imposed 16 packages of massive and unprecedented restrictive measures in response to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.

    EU sanctions have had a major effect on Russia’s economy, putting its supply chains under significant strain. By closing down sources of essential revenue and access to critical goods and technologies, these measures have made it costlier and more difficult for Russia to wage war.

    The package of sanctions adopted on 24 February 2025 continues targeting important sectors of the Russian economy and the Russian Government’s means of revenue generation.

    The EU has notably imposed a port access ban and a ban on the provision of a broad range of services related to maritime transport on 74 additional non-EU tankers that are part of Putin’s shadow fleet, circumventing the oil price cap and supporting Russia’s energy sector.

    A total of 153 vessels are now designated by the EU. Those measures have an important impact in curtailing the activities of the shadow fleet and reducing energy shipping capacities available to Russia. The EU will continue to work with Member States and partners to further close related networks.

    The EU has also targeted a number of systemically important sectors of Russia, including energy, trade, transport and infrastructure, such as through a transaction ban on Russian airports and ports used to support Russia’s war efforts or circumvent EU sanctions.

    In addition, to further restrict Russia’s access to revenue, the EU has added primary aluminium to the list of goods subject to a prohibition for their purchase, import or transfer, directly or indirectly into the EU, if they originate in Russia or are exported from Russia.

    The scope of this ban therefore goes beyond import to the EU.

    Last updated: 3 April 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Duckworth, Durbin, Schumer, Democratic Senators Urge AG Bondi to Appoint a Special Counsel to Investigate Trump Administration Signal Chat National Security Breach

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Illinois Tammy Duckworth
    April 03, 2025
    The Senators wrote: “These shockingly reckless breaches of security protocols for safeguarding sensitive and classified information clearly warrant an investigation into whether any of the government officials involved violated federal laws”
    [WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—a member of the U.S. Senate Armed Services (SASC), Veterans’ Affairs (SVAC) and Foreign Relations (SFRC) Committees—joined U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, along with Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and 28 Senate Democrats in sending a letter to U.S. Attorney General (AG) Pam Bondi urging her to appoint a Special Counsel to thoroughly and impartially investigate whether any of the government officials involved in the Signal chat security breach violated federal criminal law. On March 24, The Atlantic’s editor in chief reported that President Trump’s National Security Advisor Michael Waltz had included him in a group text chain with several high-ranking national security officials where highly sensitive, classified or controlled information was shared and discussed over Signal—an unsecure commercial messaging app.
    “In addition to the reckless inclusion of a journalist in the chat, we are deeply concerned about this serious breach in the proper handling of such information and deliberations,” the Senators wrote. “Appointment of a Special Counsel is appropriate where the Department may have a conflict of interest or extraordinary circumstances are present, a criminal investigation is warranted and it is in the public interest to appoint an outside Special Counsel to investigate the matter. Such circumstances are clearly present here.”
    The Signal chat group started by Mr. Waltz included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and Central Intelligence Agency Director John Ratcliffe, among at least 18 other high-ranking government officials. In addition to discussing the sensitive foreign policy implications of military strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen, these officials proceeded to discuss key operational information regarding the precise timing of the planned attacks, the types of military aircraft and munitions to be used and the targets and results of the strikes as they occurred. An unprecedented security breach of this magnitude involving top senior government officials presents the kind of extraordinary circumstances clearly contemplated by the Special Counsel regulations.
    “These officials conducted a highly sensitive discussion, including of clearly classified or controlled information, over the commercial messaging app Signal, including in some instances on personal devices and while traveling in foreign countries, rather than using the secure U.S. government channels and facilities that are designed and required for the sharing of such information. Despite subsequent claims to the contrary by you, President Trump and several of the officials involved, including in testimony before Congress, some of the information they shared and discussed over Signal would almost certainly be considered classified or, at a minimum, controlled, prior to and in the immediate aftermath of an impending strike,” the Senators wrote.
    In the letter, the Senators raised concerns if the Signal chat violated federal law. For example, gross negligence in handling national defense information may violate the Espionage Act. Importantly, other laws, including the Federal Records Act, require the preservation of certain government records. Destruction of government records or property may constitute a violation of various criminal statutes. Subsequent statements to Congress and testimony before the House and Senate Intelligence Committees by several of the officials involved raise additional concerns about potential violations of federal criminal laws that prohibit making false statements to Congress, committing perjury in testimony to Congress, inducing another person to commit perjury or conspiring to commit any of the foregoing actions.
    “During your confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, you assured the American people that everyone will be held to ‘an equal, fair system of justice’ if you were confirmed as Attorney General and that ‘no one is above the law.’ As the individuals most seriously implicated in this incident include senior officials at the highest levels, including several of your fellow cabinet members, appointment of a Special Counsel is necessary to ensure that the investigation and any ensuing prosecutions are fair, impartial, and independent and that no official, regardless of seniority or political affiliation, is above the law. The people of this country deserve the assurance that this matter will be taken seriously and addressed swiftly. To do so, we urge you to appoint a Special Counsel immediately,” the Senators concluded.
    Along with Duckworth, Durbin and Schumer, the letter was co-signed by U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Peter Welch (D-VT), Jack Reed (D-RI), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Chris Coons (D-DE), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Tina Smith (D-MN), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), John Fetterman (D-PA), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Patty Murray (D-WA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY),  Ed Markey (D-MA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and Gary Peters (D-MI).
    Full text of the letter is available on Senator Duckworth’s website and below:
    March 31, 2025
    Dear Attorney General Bondi:
    On March 24, The Atlantic’s editor in chief reported that President Trump’s National Security Advisor Michael Waltz had included him in a group message chain with several high-ranking national security officials where highly sensitive, classified, or controlled information was shared and discussed over Signal—an unsecure commercial messaging app. In addition to the reckless inclusion of a journalist in the chat, we are deeply concerned about this serious breach in the proper handling of such information and deliberations. Given the extraordinary circumstances of this shocking incident and the significant public interests at stake, it is imperative that you immediately appoint a Special Counsel to thoroughly and impartially investigate whether any of the government officials involved violated federal criminal law. 
    Appointment of a Special Counsel is appropriate where the Department may have a conflict of interest or extraordinary circumstances are present, a criminal investigation is warranted, and it is in the public interest to appoint an outside Special Counsel to investigate the matter. Such circumstances are clearly present here.
    The Signal chat group started by Mr. Waltz included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and Central Intelligence Agency Director John Ratcliffe, among at least 18 other high-ranking government officials. In addition to discussing the sensitive foreign policy implications of military strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen, these officials proceeded to discuss key operational information regarding the precise timing of the planned attacks, the types of military aircraft and munitions to be used, and the targets and results of the strikes as they occurred. An unprecedented security breach of this magnitude involving top senior government officials presents the kind of extraordinary circumstances clearly contemplated by the Special Counsel regulations.
    These officials conducted a highly sensitive discussion, including of clearly classified or controlled information, over the commercial messaging app Signal, including in some instances on personal devices and while traveling in foreign countries, rather than using the secure U.S. government channels and facilities that are designed and required for the sharing of such information. Despite subsequent claims to the contrary by you, President Trump, and several of the officials involved, including in testimony before Congress, some of the information they shared and discussed over Signal would almost certainly be considered classified or, at a minimum, controlled, prior to and in the immediate aftermath of an impending strike.
    These shockingly reckless breaches of security protocols for safeguarding sensitive and classified information clearly warrant an investigation into whether any of the government officials involved violated federal laws pertaining to the proper safeguarding and preservation of such information. For example, gross negligence in handling national defense information may violate the Espionage Act. Importantly, other laws, including the Federal Records Act, require the preservation of certain government records. Signal allows users to schedule messages for deletion after certain time periods and Mr. Waltz appears to have set the chat messages to delete initially after one week and then later in the chat changed the setting to delete messages after four weeks. Destruction of government records or property may constitute a violation of various criminal statutes. Subsequent statements to Congress and testimony before the House and Senate Intelligence Committees by several of the officials involved raise additional concerns about potential violations of federal criminal laws that prohibit making false statements to Congress, committing perjury in testimony to Congress, inducing another person to commit perjury, or conspiring to commit any of the foregoing actions.
    Even prior to his first Administration, President Trump campaigned for the need to prosecute and “lock up” individuals who allegedly “bypass government security” or “sent and received classified information on an insecure server.” Further, as an avowedly loyal and zealous advocate for the President, you echoed these same sentiments prior to your confirmation. Given the extraordinary nature of this security breach by senior Trump Administration officials, the likelihood that these actions needlessly endangered American lives and our nation’s security, the importance of putting our nation’s security before partisan political interests, and the range of federal criminal laws that may have been violated, it is imperative that the Department of Justice conduct a thorough investigation to assess the extent of the damage and determine whether any criminal charges are warranted against any of the government officials involved.
    During your confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, you assured the American people that everyone will be held to “an equal, fair system of justice” if you were confirmed as Attorney General, and that “no one is above the law.” As the individuals most seriously implicated in this incident include senior officials at the highest levels, including several of your fellow cabinet members, appointment of a Special Counsel is necessary to ensure that the investigation and any ensuing prosecutions are fair, impartial, and independent and that no official, regardless of seniority or political affiliation, is above the law.
    The people of this country deserve the assurance that this matter will be taken seriously and addressed swiftly. To do so, we urge you to appoint a Special Counsel immediately.
    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Human smuggling coordinator sentenced following ICE Arizona, law enforcement partner investigation

    Source: US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

    PHOENIX — Greiby Melissa Barcelo-Velasquez was sentenced March 25 to 30 months in prison for her role in smuggling over 100 Colombians into the United States. The investigation, conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Border Patrol Sector Intelligence Unit, began in late 2023 after numerous Colombian nationals identified the 39-year-old as their smuggling coordinator.

    “The defendant and her associates blatantly disregarded the safety and well-being of others by prioritizing personal profit over human lives,” said ICE Homeland Security Investigations Arizona Special Agent in Charge Francisco B. Burrola. “We are committed to working with our law enforcement partners to disrupt these dangerous transnational criminal networks and ensure that those who exploit victims for financial gain are brought to justice.”

    Barcelo-Velasquez owned and operated the Baul Travel SAS travel agency in her native country, Colombia. According to court documents, she allegedly charged the victims a fee to travel to Mexico under the guise of vacationing, with additional bribes required in U.S. currency at Mexican airports.

    Once in Mexico, the Colombian nationals were taken to stash houses near the border and then transported by armed gunmen to cross illegally into the United States.

    This case was coordinated under Joint Task Force Alpha. JTFA, a partnership with the Department of Justice, has been elevated and expanded by the attorney general with a mandate to target cartels and transnational criminal organizations to eliminate human smuggling and trafficking networks operating in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, and Colombia that impact public safety and the security of our borders. To date, JTFA’s work has resulted in more than 355 domestic and international arrests of leaders, organizers, and significant facilitators of alien smuggling; more than 320 U.S. convictions; more than 265 significant jail sentences imposed; and forfeitures of substantial assets.

    Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stuart Zander and Adriana Genco from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona in Phoenix handled the prosecution.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Heinrich, Luján Join Senate Democrats in Demanding Trump Rescind Illegal Executive Order Threatening Federal Employee Collective Bargaining Agreements

    US Senate News:

    Source: US Senator for New Mexico Ben Ray Luján
    Washington, D.C. – Wednesday, U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) joined the entire Senate Democratic Caucus in urging President Donald Trump to rescind his March 27 executive order to end collective bargaining agreements between public employee unions and dozens of federal agencies and bureaus. In their letter, the Democratic Senators blasted the move as a “gross overreach” of presidential authority, asserting that the executive order is a clear attempt to gut the federal merit-based civil service and implement a system of political cronyism. They stressed that the order poses a grave threat to the ability of over 1 million federal workers to carry out their missions and deliver important services for the American people – and thus should be rescinded immediately.
    “We write today in outrage over your recent executive order entitled Exclusions from Federal Labor-Management Relations Programs, a gross overreach of the authority granted in the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 (CSRA). This order is an insult to the hardworking public servants who go to work on behalf of the American people,” the Senators began.
    “The executive order effectively classifies two thirds of the federal workforce as having national security missions, a blatant misuse of a limited authority intended to provide operational flexibility to address legitimate security needs,” they continued. “There is no evidence that the long-standing collective bargaining agreements at these agencies have jeopardized our nation’s security in any way; to the contrary, the protection collective bargaining has provided for employees allows them to conduct their work on behalf of the American people—including blowing the whistle on fraud or abuse—without political interference.”
    “This Administration clearly does not have even a basic understanding of the legally binding nature of federal collective bargaining agreements and is actively trying to bend the law to undermine protections for federal civil servants. We urge you to immediately rescind this illegal executive order so that our dedicated public servants can continue to work on behalf of the American public without fear for their job or political retribution,” the Senators concluded.
    The Senators’ letter is endorsed by the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE), and Service Employees International Union (SEIU).
    Led by U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Mark Warner (D-Va.), and Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Senators Heinrich and Luján were joined on this letter by Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Angus King (I-Maine), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).
    A copy of the letter is available here and below.
    Dear President Trump: 
    We write today in outrage over your recent executive order entitled Exclusions from Federal Labor-Management Relations Programs, a gross overreach of the authority granted in the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 (CSRA). 
    This order is an insult to the hardworking public servants who go to work on behalf of the American people. They care for our veterans, deliver disaster assistance, prevent wildfires, help farmers improve crop yields, manage health benefits for 9/11 first responders, research treatments and cures for diseases, keep air travel safe, process tax returns, staff our national parks and much, much more. Nearly one third of these dedicated civil servants are veterans seeking to continue their service to our country out of uniform.  
    The executive order effectively classifies two thirds of the federal workforce as having national security missions, a blatant misuse of a limited authority intended to provide operational flexibility to address legitimate security needs. The national security exemption has existed for nearly 50 years and has been used only sparingly by Republican and Democratic Administrations—including during your first term—to exclude federal offices with an unquestionable core function in intelligence, counterintelligence, or national security. There is no evidence that the long-standing collective bargaining agreements at these agencies have jeopardized our nation’s security in any way; to the contrary, the protection collective bargaining has provided for employees allows them to conduct their work on behalf of the American people—including blowing the whistle on fraud or abuse—without political interference. 
    Federal employees’ collective bargaining agreements are critical to ensuring they continue to serve the American people with the peace of mind that comes with being protected from unfair labor practices. Unlike in the private sector, federal employee unions in most cases cannot negotiate pay or benefits, which are set by Congress, and they are legally prohibited from striking. The federal collective bargaining agreements do, however, protect federal employees from illegal firings, retaliation, and discrimination. They also promote resources for whistleblowers and veterans. These federal union contracts give employees in the civil service protections from retaliation so they can serve the American people fairly and effectively without partisan political interference.  
    This executive order, which ruthlessly strips collective bargaining agreements for over one million federal workers, is the most recent attack your Administration has levied against our merit-based civil service in the effort to cut the workforce and replace them with political cronies. While the CSRA does give the president the authority to limit collective bargaining agreements due to national security concerns, the executive order’s direction to terminate mass swaths of federal employee collective bargaining agreements is clearly intended to broadly dismantle the CSRA, which is specifically designed to grant federal employees the right to collective bargaining as a means to resolve workplace issues while maintaining the smooth functioning of government operations.  
    When the Secretary of Labor testified in February in front of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Members of Congress asked her both in-person and through questions for the record whether she and the Administration would commit to honoring all legally binding collective bargaining agreements signed by federal agencies and labor unions, and whether federal employees have the right to organize and collectively bargain without fear of retaliation. The Secretary answered, “if confirmed, I will follow the law and work with the experts at the Department to understand the collective bargaining process at the Department and the terms and conditions of the collective bargaining agreements in place.” This Administration clearly does not have even a basic understanding of the legally binding nature of federal collective bargaining agreements and is actively trying to bend the law to undermine protections for federal civil servants.  
    We urge you to immediately rescind this illegal executive order so that our dedicated public servants can continue to work on behalf of the American public without fear for their job or political retribution.
    Sincerely,

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Connecticut District 26 Locals Open Pratt & Whitney Negotiations With Call for Fair Contract

    Source: US GOIAM Union

    Negotiations are underway for thousands of IAM members at Pratt & Whitney in the greater Hartford, Conn., area. IAM Locals 700 and 1746 (District 26) have joined together with a shared purpose: to advocate effectively for their members’ rights and needs.

    Pratt & Whitney produce and maintains jet aircraft engines for military and commercial jets, such as the KC-46 air refueling tanker, the F-35 joint strike fighter, and the A320 commercial airliner. 

    “This committee will ensure that our membership’s voice is heard at the table during negotiations with Pratt & Whitney,” said Jeff Santini, IAM District 26’s Directing Business Representative and Organizer. “We are a highly skilled workforce that builds, tests, and maintains the world’s best commercial and military engines.”

    Healthy wages that are in line with the rising cost of living and inflation are top priorities in these negotiations. Furthermore, the committee is focused on improving language on guaranteed work protections and ensuring retirement security, which the membership has voiced as top concerns.

    IAM members are part of a highly skilled workforce that undergoes rigorous training, guaranteeing that every engine meets the precision and durability required for military and commercial operations. 

    Additionally, union contracts help secure fair wages, benefits, and job stability, reducing turnover and maintaining a knowledgeable workforce with deep expertise in aerospace manufacturing. This stability is essential for maintaining a consistent production pipeline, preventing delays, and ensuring that military and commercial customers have the necessary equipment to remain operational and practical. 

    “IAM members at Pratt & Whitney are pivotal in building engines for military aircraft that are crucial to ensuring the highest standards of quality, safety, and reliability in national defense,” said IAM Eastern Territory General Vice President David Sullivan. “Securing an industry-leading contract isn’t just beneficial to our members; it’s also beneficial to the company.”

    In the face of evolving global security threats, relying on union workers helps safeguard the integrity of defense technology and the well-being of those who manufacture it. Moreover, commercial customers maintain an efficient fleet with highly engineered and manufactured products.

    “The IAM is committed to securing a fair and just contract for our members at Pratt & Whitney. Our highly skilled workforce is the backbone of this company’s success, and they deserve an agreement that recognizes their dedication and contributions,” said IAM International President Brian Bryant. “We will continue to stand strong, united, and determined to achieve the best possible outcome for our members and their families.”

    The current contract expires at midnight on May 4, 2025.

    Share and Follow:

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sen. Moran Questions Boeing CEO about Safety Concerns, Future of Kansas Aviation Manufacturing

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Kansas – Jerry Moran

    Moran Secures Boeing’s Commitment to Keep Jobs in Kansas

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) – chairman of the Commerce Subcommittee on Aviation, Space, and Innovation – today questioned Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg about the steps the company is taking to ensure public safety on their aircrafts and what the future of Boeing looks like in Kansas.

    “Boeing is in the process of acquiring Spirit AeroSystems – the largest private employer in Kansas, employing about 12,000 people,” continued Sen. Moran. “We have hundreds of small businesses who do work for Boeing and work with Spirit. It’s not just one company, it’s a whole system by which Kansas aerospace and aviation – the Air Capital of the World – operates.”

    “It was indicated to me that without the acquisition of Spirit AeroSystems the new generation of any aircraft developed by Boeing would not involve work in Wichita or work in Kansas,” continued Sen. Moran. “With the acquisition, the statement was made, that the work could more likely occur in Kansas. You are going to build a new aircraft someday, what’s the plan for where that work will take place?”

    Mr. Ortberg discussed future plans for aviation development and assured Sen. Moran of Boeing’s commitment to keep jobs in Kansas.

    “Let me just assure you that Spirit AeroSystems and the work we do in Kansas is critically important,” said Mr. Ortberg. “We are spending a significant amount of our capital to acquire that company, and we are not going to do that and move work out of Kansas. The work that we are doing there is going to stay there. In fact, I am very hopeful that once we get the acquisition closed, we will find opportunities to do even more work.”

    Click HERE to Watch Sen. Moran’s Questions and Remarks

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: 2023 a record year for Canberra tourism

    Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

    The city’s diverse, accessible visitor experience is growing Canberra’s reputation as a go-to holiday destination.

    Figures released by Tourism Research Australia show that 2023 was a record-breaking year for Canberra tourism.

    During 2023 the ACT welcomed 5.8 million visitors who spent $3.8 billion in Canberra. This is the highest ever visitor expenditure in a 12-month period over the past 25 years. It surpassed 2022’s expenditure by $770 million.

    Total visitor numbers have recovered to 95 per cent from pre-COVID levels. Expenditure has also surpassed pre-COVID levels, at 135 per cent compared to 2019.

    Last year the ACT welcomed 5.63 million domestic visitors who spent a total of $3.33 billion. In the last 25 years, this is:

    • the highest ever number of visitor nights
    • the highest ever expenditure
    • the third highest number of domestic visitors.

    Across all states and territories, the ACT experienced the biggest growth in domestic overnight visitation, and second highest expenditure growth, when compared to 2022. NSW remains the main source of domestic visitors to the ACT, accounting for two thirds of overnight visitors, and three quarters of day trip visitors.

    International markets continue to rebound strongly with the USA, UK, China and India delivering 40 per cent of international visitors.

    The city’s diverse, accessible visitor experience, led by its major attractions and events, are growing Canberra’s reputation as a go-to holiday destination. Major exhibitions at national attractions have been significant drawcards and new investment in a range of tourism products is providing more reasons to visit and return.

    The ACT’s expanding aviation connectivity is making it cheaper and easier for visitors to get to Canberra. Canberra Airport connects to 12 domestic destinations, three North American hubs with Fiji Airways, and a host of destinations through Asia with Batik Airways.

    Canberra’s Tourism industry is thriving on a national stage, receiving a record seven awards at the 2023 Qantas Australian National Awards including three gold awards.

    Get ACT news and events delivered straight to your inbox, sign up to our email newsletter:


    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI: H2 Clipper Transforms Aviation and Aerospace Manufacturing with Patented Swarm Robotics Innovation

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SANTA BARBARA, Calif., April 03, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — H2 Clipper, Inc. (“H2C”), a leader in sustainable hydrogen-based infrastructure and transportation, has been granted U.S. Patent No. 12,234,035 for the company’s innovative approach to using autonomous and semi-autonomous robotic swarms in aircraft and aerospace manufacturing. This milestone marks H2C’s 15th awarded patent.

    The newly issued patent is a continuation of H2C’s foundational robotics patent (U.S. Patent No. 11,851,214) granted on December 26, 2023. It extends the scope of H2C’s proprietary robotics claims to expressly cover large-scale aviation and aerospace manufacturing. The use of Swarm Robotics in aerospace production significantly reduces manufacturing time and costs, while enabling unparalleled precision and continuous round-the-clock autonomous production.

    “The issuance of this patent marks a pivotal moment in the evolution of aerospace and aviation manufacturing. By replacing traditional assembly lines with robotic swarms, this breakthrough enables aircraft and large aerospace assets to be built faster, at a significantly lower cost, and with far greater precision,” said Rinaldo Brutoco, H2C Founder and CEO. “Conservative estimates based on current aerospace production benchmarks suggest this approach can reduce total manufacturing costs by 40% or more, and cut production timeframes by up to 60%, while simultaneously improving quality.”

    H2C’s newly patented system employs a network of robots that operate collaboratively and autonomously to construct large aerospace structures with unprecedented efficiency and a significantly smaller production facility footprint. The innovation includes:

    • Automated Manufacturing: Robots work in a coordinated “swarm” to assemble airframes, attach the exterior skin, install structural and internal components, perform bonding and fastening operations, conduct in-process quality inspections, and carry-out other complex, high-precision tasks.
    • AI-Driven Optimization: Machine learning and generative AI guide the robotic swarm to self-correct, improve manufacturing precision, reduce errors, and optimize construction timelines.
    • Scalability and Safety: The system uses built-in sensors and AI-driven oversight to safely manage all operations, assuring collision-free operation and eliminating the need for workers to operate at dangerous heights. With no fixed assembly line or gantries required, manufacturing can be supervised remotely and scaled across multiple locations.
    • Heavy-Lift Robotics Integration: The technology enables large-scale structures to be constructed entirely in place—horizontally or vertically—using autonomous robots capable of repositioning and aligning major components. This flexibility supports multiple assembly approaches while reducing infrastructure requirements and improving safety.

    Whereas traditionally, aircraft must be moved through multiple stages, requiring massive facilities, complex scheduling and high logistical overhead, these assets are built in place using H2C’s approach, eliminating costly movement, saving time, and reducing the need for assembly line infrastructure. H2C’s focus on Swarm Robotics arose from its pursuit of a manufacturing approach that would be suited for constructing its Pipeline-in-the-Sky™ airships. But it soon realized the applicability of the novel approach to addressing multiple challenges faced in all aviation and aerospace manufacturing. With the continuation patent now issued, the company plans to assemble a select group of industry leaders in aerospace engineering, robotics, artificial intelligence, regulatory affairs, and advanced manufacturing to guide the next phase of development and demonstration. This expert team will play a key role in shaping a technology roadmap that supports potential licensing to OEMs—and may lay the groundwork for a broader industry consortium to accelerate adoption of Swarm Robotics across the aerospace sector.

    “This patent represents a game-changing moment for aerospace manufacturing—a shift as significant as the invention of the assembly line itself,” added Brutoco. “Swarm Robotics gives OEMs the ability to build aircraft and spacecraft smarter, faster, and more affordably than ever before, opening the door to a new era in aviation and the future of flight.”

    H2C was selected in 2021 for inclusion in Dassault Systèmes’ prestigious 3DEXPERIENCE® Lab accelerator program; and in 2024, H2C and Dassault agreed on a renewed three-year contract to further develop robotic software for this novel construction method.

    H2C is represented in intellectual property matters by John C. Serio, a Partner in the Boston Intellectual Property and Technology Group at Withers Worldwide.

    About H2 Clipper, Inc. (H2C)
    H2C is the developer of high-speed, Pipeline-in-the-Sky™ hydrogen-powered airships for long distance global transport that use no fossil fuels and have a host of commercial and humanitarian applications, and of the novel H2C Safety Pipe™ for “last mile” distribution of hydrogen to end users. Since 2008, the company has made significant strategic investments to research, develop, and patent core IP in modern airship design, including advanced software systems, and midstream solutions for efficient delivery of both gaseous and liquid hydrogen.

    Media Contact:
    Lisa Murray
    Trevi Communications, Inc.
    lisa@trevicomm.com

    Photos accompanying this announcement are available at:
    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d82ad9a1-9fa0-4c84-8753-303feda9ea1f
    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/313f4f34-bd77-4122-bdd0-244873dba26d
    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/9d5d0cb1-06e7-472b-a293-62f3a6e8a432

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Drone Surveying Market One of The Fastest Growing Segments of the Drone Industry as Revenue Opportunity Climbs

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    PALM BEACH, Fla., April 03, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — FN Media Group News Commentary – The US Drone Surveying Market has been the Global Market Leader in recent years and is expected to continue for years to come. The US has been the market leader in the drone industry since the start of the drone revolution. Across industries, companies have employed drones for their day-to-day operations. Industries such as pharmaceuticals, mining, real estate, and agriculture are some of the prominent end-use industries for the drone surveying market. According to an industry report, the US drone surveying market is expected to witness double-digit market growth in the forecast period and is expected to reach a valuation of US$ 2540.0 million by the end of 2033. The construction and mining industry is expected to be the market leader in the demand for drone surveying services. Increased spending from governments and rising demand for residential and commercial spaces would add a significantly high pace to the overall drone surveying demand in the US. The report said; “Why Land Survey Commands Largest Market Share? The drone land survey as a service is a common one among all industries. The demand for land surveys arises from sectors such as construction, mining, energy, real estate, public administration, and agriculture among others. That is why land survey services contribute most to the drone survey company’s revenue. The drone land survey holds around 53% of the total market share in the drone survey industry. With the help of drone land surveys, companies/institutions get their desired datasets which ultimately help them in making informed decisions. For example, a land survey for infrastructure development can help companies and planning and development by providing required 3D maps or images. It is expected that the land survey market to remain the top revenue contributor for drone survey service providers.”   Active Companies in the drone industry today include ZenaTech, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZENA), Archer Aviation Inc. (NYSE: ACHR), Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: PLTR), EHang (NASDAQ: EH), Red Cat Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: RCAT).

    Fact.MR continued: “Construction Industry to Contribute Most to the Drone Surveying Service Demand. The spending on infrastructural development has been all-time high across the major economies of the world. The market players are taking the help of drone service providers in different stages of planning and development. Drone surveying companies provide services for the use of town planning, land record digitalization, urban city development, and other development-related services. With the help of drones, companies are able to cover increased areas (acres of land/area) within no time, and with precise and accurate data. These collected images and data can be easily converted into meaningful output, which can be useful in the planning and development of urban towns. Drone surveying has been very useful for the construction industry by providing important insights with minimal cost and improved efficiency.”

    ZenaTech (NASDAQ:ZENA) Closes Second Southeast Region Acquisition, Wallace Surveying Corporation, Set to Become the Third Acquisition to Power Its National Drone as a Service (DaaS) Business – ZenaTech, Inc. (FSE: 49Q) (BMV: ZENA) (“ZenaTech”), a technology company specializing in AI (Artificial Intelligence) drone, Drone-as-a-Service (DaaS), enterprise SaaS and Quantum Computing solutions, announces that it has closed the acquisition of Wallace Surveying Corporation (“Wallace”) of West Palm Beach, Florida, a well-established land survey company with thirty years of experience. Wallace provides construction and land development surveys delivering accurate and reliable data that supports project planning and design for developers, contractors, engineers, and architect customers.

    This is ZenaTech’s second acquisition in the Southeast region as part of a larger national roll-up strategy to disrupt the land survey industry by accelerating the use of drones for speed and accuracy benefits. The acquisition also further powers the Company’s national Drone as a Service, or DaaS, business as the third US acquisition set to provide access to the ZenaDrone 1000 and the IQ series. These multifunction drones are set to provide a variety of services including power line inspections, precision agriculture, law enforcement, and search and rescue for natural disasters such as hurricanes.

    “Wallace Surveying Corporation is well respected in the South Florida business community with longstanding existing customer relationships. Its team brings considerable expertise toward our goal of innovating land surveys at scale leveraging advanced drone data collection, data management, mapping and digital deliverables. This acquisition is another step towards our vision to create a national DaaS business, bringing AI drone efficiencies and precision to a variety of legacy verticals and manual tasks,” said CEO Shaun Passley, Ph.D.

    ZenaTech’s Drones as a Service or DaaS model is similar to Software as a Service (SaaS), but instead of providing software solutions over the Internet, the company will offer ZenaDrone solutions and services on a subscription or pay-per-use basis. Customers can conveniently access drones for eliminating manual or time-consuming tasks achieving more precision, such as for surveying, inspections, security and law enforcement, or farming precision agriculture applications, without having to buy, operate, or maintain the drones themselves.

    The DaaS business model offers customers such as government agencies, real estate developers, construction firms, farmers or energy companies reduced upfront costs as there is no need to purchase expensive drones, as well as convenience, as there is no need to manage maintenance and operation. The model also offers scalability to use more often or less often based on business needs and enables access to advanced drone technology sensors or attachments like spraying, without the need for specialized training.

    Accurate land surveys are essential for the planning, designing, and executing of roads, bridges, and building projects for cities, commercial, and residential projects, and are required for legal purposes. Remotely piloted drones with an array of sensors and cameras, LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), and GPS systems for capturing high-resolution pictures and data are revolutionizing the land survey industry gathering aerial data across expansive terrains in a matter of hours instead of weeks or months using more traditional photogrammetry methods. Continued… Read this full release by visiting: https://www.financialnewsmedia.com/news-zena/.

    In Additional ZENA News: ZenaTech’s (NASDAQ:ZENA) 2024 Financial Results Shows Revenue and Assets Increase.

    2024 Financial Results:

    • As of December 31, 2024, and consistent with its recent 6K filing, ZenaTech’s 2024 full-year revenue increased by 7% to $1.96 million as compared to $1.82 million for the full year of 2023 (all figures in $Cdn. dollars)
    • Comprehensive loss for the period was ($4.04 million) versus ($.251 million) last year due to increased one-time costs of listing on Nasdaq Capital Market from lawyers, accountants, auditors, financial advisor (investment banker) and other going public expenses
    • Assets have increased over 110% to $34.6 million at year-end 2024, up from $16.4 million at year-end 2023. This is due to the company’s acquisition of three patents, and a total of four software companies. In addition, the company has signed multiple Letters of Intent (LOIs) as part of an acquisition strategy that will tremendously increase future revenue
    • Liabilities continue to be low, having increased $3.7 million to $12.8 million at year-end 2024 from $9.1 million at year-end 2023
    • The Company’s ratio of debt to total capitalization is 31%, which is well within the accepted standard of less than 50%
    • ZenaTech’s existing cash and funds available through lines of credit will be sufficient to finance the next 12 months of the company’s operations. We anticipate that cash generated internally, and lines of credit will be sufficient to fund our drone development and acquisitions
    • Additional information is available from ZenaTech’s 6K filing on the SEC EDGAR website. The company will be filing its 20F by the due date, which is April 30, 2024, for Private Foreign Issuers. Continued… Read this full release by visiting: https://www.zenatech.com/newsroom/.

    Other recent developments in the drone/aviation industries include:

    Archer Aviation Inc. (NYSE: ACHR) and Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: PLTR) recently announced a partnership today to build the AI foundation for the future of next-gen aviation technologies. For decades, the aviation industry has made only incremental improvements, constrained by legacy technology and a dominant duopoly in commercial aviation. With the rapid acceleration of AI, as well as breakthroughs in distributed electric propulsion, the industry is now poised for change.

    The two plan to leverage Palantir Foundry and AIP to accelerate the scaling of Archer’s aircraft manufacturing capabilities at its facilities in Georgia and Silicon Valley, with the intent to advance the development of software solutions to drive innovation across the entire value chain.

    This would include the development of next-gen software utilizing AI to improve a range of aviation systems, including air traffic control, movement control and route planning, with the goal of improving efficiency, safety and affordability across the industry.

    Archer and Palantir will formalize this partnership later today during a signing ceremony between Palantir co-founder and CEO, Alex Karp, and Archer founder and CEO, Adam Goldstein, at Palantir’s AIPCon.

    EHang (NASDAQ: EH), the world’s leading Urban Air Mobility (UAM) technology platform company, recently announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Guangdong EHang General Aviation Co., Ltd. (“EHang General Aviation”), and its joint venture company in Hefei, Hefei HeYi Aviation Co., Ltd. (“HeYi Aviation”), have been granted the first batch of Air Operator Certificates (“OC”) for civil human-carrying pilotless aerial vehicles by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (“CAAC”).

    This milestone officially marks the launch of China’s human-carrying flight era in the low-altitude economy, allowing citizens and consumers to purchase flight tickets for low-altitude tourism, urban sightseeing, and diverse commercial human-carrying flight services at related operation sites in Guangzhou and Hefei. In the future, operators will also gradually expand into more other scenarios such as urban commuting based on operational conditions legally and compliantly. The issuance of the first batch of OCs sets a new benchmark for the low-altitude economy and urban air mobility and further unleashing a more powerful vitality of the new-quality productive forces.

    Red Cat Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: RCAT), a drone technology company integrating robotic hardware and software for military, government, and commercial operations, recently reported its financial results for the 2024 Transition Period (as of December 31, 2024 and the eight months then ended) and provides a corporate update.

    “Red Cat’s partnerships and global expansion strategy is already yielding strong results. Over the past few months, we’ve introduced the Black Widow and Edge 130 drones to key international markets, including the Middle East, Asia Pacific, and soon Latin America,” said Jeff Thompson, Red Cat CEO. “This momentum underscores growing global interest in our Family of Systems. The ongoing development of Black Widow for the U.S. Army’s SRR Program of Record, bolstered by AI partners like Palantir and Palladyne, we’re not only meeting immediate defense needs—we’re ensuring our warfighters and allies are well equipped for rapidly-evolving battlefield.”

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    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: London Luton Airport Expansion development consent decision announced

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    London Luton Airport Expansion development consent decision announced

    The London Luton Airport Expansion application has today been granted development consent by the Secretary of State for Transport.

    London Luton Airport Expansion

    The application comprises the expansion of London Luton Airport from its current permitted cap of 18 million passengers per annum (mppa) up to 32 million mppa, including: new terminal capacity; additional taxiways and other transport infrastructure; the construction of landside support buildings; surface access adjustments; mitigation works and other associated development.  

    The application was submitted to the Planning Inspectorate for consideration by London Luton Airport Limited on 27 February 2023 and accepted for examination on 27 March 2023.  

    Following an examination during which the public, statutory consultees and interested parties were given the opportunity to give evidence to the Examining Authority, recommendations were made to the Secretary of State on 10 May 2024.   

    This is the 57th transport application out of 152 applications examined to date and was again completed by the Planning Inspectorate within the statutory timescale laid down in the Planning Act 2008.   

    Local communities continue to be given the opportunity of being involved in the examination of projects that may affect them. Local people, the local authority and other interested parties were able to participate in this six-month examination.   

    The Examining Authority listened and gave full consideration to all local views and the evidence gathered during the examination before making its recommendation to the Secretary of State.  

    The decision, the recommendation made by the Examining Authority to the Secretary of State for Transport and the evidence considered by the Examining Authority in reaching its recommendation are publicly available on the project pages of the National Infrastructure Planning website.  

    Journalists wanting further information should contact the Planning Inspectorate Press Office, on 0303 444 5004 or 0303 444 5005 or email:   

    Press.office@planninginspectorate.gov.uk

    Updates to this page

    Published 3 April 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Defense News: USS John C. Stennis Implements Reactor Pin Program to Enhance Readiness and Professionalism

    Source: United States Navy

    NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (March 10, 2025) – The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) is the second nuclear-powered carrier of its class to implement a new reactor pin program. The program, started in December 2024, recognizes senior in-rate qualifications within the reactor department, providing Sailors with a visible symbol of their expertise and contributions to shipboard operations.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI: Philippine Airlines Names ibex Contact Center Partner of the Year

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    MANILA, Philippines, April 03, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — ibex (NASDAQ: IBEX), a leading global provider of business process outsourcing (BPO) and AI-powered customer engagement technology solutions, today announced that Philippine Airlines (PAL), the Philippines’ flag carrier and only full-service network airline, recently awarded ibex its Top Overall Contact Center Partner Award for 2024.

    “Our partnership with ibex goes beyond performance—it reflects our shared commitment to PAL’s goal of being truly customer-obsessed,” said Mac Munsayac, Head of Customer Experience at Philippine Airlines. “By putting our people first, we ensure they’re empowered to put our customers at the heart of everything we do. That’s how we achieved PAL Customer Support’s 2024 scores of 95% CSAT and +74 NPS for voice, and 92% CSAT with +78 NPS for non-voice—best-in-class results that showcase the dedication of our frontliners and partners.”

    Despite being PAL’s newest CX partner, ibex raised the bar by achieving the highest scorecard results among its global BPO partners.

    “This is a tremendous honor, and we are so proud to work with the premier airline in the Philippines,” said Potski Alvarez, President of ibex Philippines. “This award is a clear validation of ibex’s ability to deliver the best CX through our unique combination of amazing talent, world-class training and development, and industry-leading technology. We applaud PAL’s focus and commitment to delivering the best customer experience possible. Together, we are resetting the gold standard for their customers and helping deliver on PAL’s promise of gracious Filipino care that comes from the heart—one experience at a time.”

    ibex operates nine CX service centers across the Philippines, including – Quezon City, City of Mandaluyong, Pasig City, City of Parañaque, City of Muntinlupa, Davao City, and Tagbilaran City. The company recently celebrated the grand opening of its second site in Davao – located at Felcris Centrale, 40-D Quimpo Blvd, Talomo – and continues to look for new expansion opportunities in the Philippines.

    The revolutionary ibex Wave iX solution suite harnesses AI to assist agents in delivering hyper-personalized customer interactions that drive enhanced outcomes and profitability.

    ibex’s award-winning culture and unparalleled employee experience features a full range of fun activities and engagement events for employees year-round, including annual employee VIP events, ibex Idol global talent competition, ibex Sirens beauty pageant celebrating LGBTQIA+ employees, Customer Service Week and ongoing employee health and wellness programs.

    ibex has been recognized globally for its agent-first culture and outstanding employee experience. Recent awards include Philippines’ Best Employers 2024 by the Philippine Daily Inquirer and the 2023 Philippines Best Employer Brand Award by the Philippines Leadership Congress and Awards.

    “At ibex, we know that a better employee experience translates to a better customer experience, and we are focused on helping our agents succeed and advance their careers by creating the best workplace, training, tools, rewards, recognition, and opportunities,” added Potski.

    ibex offers highly competitive compensation and best-in-class benefits. New hires have access to industry-leading training and development programs to help them succeed and build their skills to advance in their careers.

    If you would like to join the winning ibex team, go to ibex.co to apply online. Follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ibexphilippines/.

    About PAL

    Philippine Airlines (PAL) is the flag carrier of the Philippines and the country’s only full-service network airline. Established in 1941, it holds the distinction of being Asia’s first commercial airline. PAL operates a fleet of Boeing, Airbus, and De Havilland aircraft, offering scheduled nonstop flights from its hubs in Manila, Cebu, Clark, and Davao to 54 domestic and 38 international destinations across Asia, North America, and Oceania.

    Renowned for its signature heartfelt and gracious Filipino service, PAL plays a vital role in supporting the global economy through air cargo and charter services. It also serves the travel needs of overseas Filipinos, business travelers, tourists, and families from around the world.

    About ibex

    ibex delivers innovative business process outsourcing (BPO), smart digital marketing, online acquisition technology, and end-to-end customer engagement solutions to help companies acquire, engage and retain valuable customers. Today, ibex operates a global CX delivery center model consisting of approximately 30 operations facilities around the world, while deploying next generation technology to drive superior customer experiences for many of the world’s leading companies across retail, e-commerce, healthcare, fintech, utilities and logistics.

    ibex leverages its diverse global team of over 30,000 employees together with industry-leading technology, including the AI-powered ibex Wave iX solutions suite, to manage nearly 175 million critical customer interactions, adding over $2.2B in lifetime customer revenue each year and driving a truly differentiated customer experience. To learn more, visit our website at ibex.co and connect with us on LinkedIn.

    Media Contact
    Dan Burris
    Daniel.Burris@ibex.co

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/e7c03cf8-cb99-4ccc-94ac-f0fad4379963

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: PISh SPbPU presented a new project at the educational forum — school design bureaus

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University presented the best practices, projects and initiatives for training highly qualified specialists needed by the modern economy at the XV St. Petersburg International Educational Forum. The Advanced Engineering School of SPbPU “Digital Engineering” (PES), as a flagship division of the SPbPU Technological Development Ecosystem, launched innovative projects at the forum with an emphasis on advanced digital and production technologies and held thematic events for teachers aimed at developing engineering education in cooperation with representatives of the domestic industry, and also became an active participant in discussion platforms.

    On the first day of the forum, a scientific and practical seminar “Formation of the inventive culture of students: from idea to implementation” was held at school No. 219 in the Krasnoselsky district of St. Petersburg on the topic of “Personnel for the economy and technological sovereignty”. Senior lecturer of the Higher School of Advanced Digital Technologies, junior research fellow of the 3D-education laboratory of the SPbPU PIS “Digital Engineering” Andrey Shimchenko spoke at the opening and took part in the discussion of key issues in the development of the intellectual and creative potential of schoolchildren.

    On March 27, the forum hosted a presentation of the school design bureau project and the signing of agreements with schools and partners. The project is based on the idea of creating a network of school design bureaus at specially selected educational sites, working together and coordinated by the Advanced Engineering School of SPbPU “Digital Engineering”. The project is being implemented in partnership with the Academy of Digital Technologies and with the support of the Government of St. Petersburg. The corporate style of the network of school design bureaus was developed by the winner of the federal competition “Design of the Young – 2024” in the “Bureau” nomination, student of the Sverdlovsk Art School named after I.D. Shadr Matvey Nechkov.

    The events took place during the strategic session “Creating a Single Space for Modern Digital Education in St. Petersburg”, the program of which included a plenary session, a discussion platform of the session “Development of Engineering Competencies of Students in School Design Bureaus” and a session “Quantum Collaboration: Development through Partnership”. The venue was the IT company “Sber IT-hub”. The organizers of the strategic session were the Advanced Engineering School of SPbPU “Digital Engineering” and the Academy of Digital Technologies.

    Today we will discuss two important issues related to the development of engineering competencies in school design bureaus and children’s technology parks. These topics are very important for the development of a modern educational environment. It is necessary for each educational institution to respond to the demand that the real labor market puts before us. I would like to thank all our partners, including manufacturing companies, universities and schools, for being ready, in the conditions of such positive collaboration, to create and build a truly future that will allow our children to become highly competitive specialists, – Valeria Zotova, Director of the Academy of Digital Technologies, welcomed the participants of the strategic session.

    SPbPU’s advanced engineering school “Digital Engineering” systematically develops career guidance and educational projects for schoolchildren and college students. These projects are based on the use of advanced digital and production technologies for teaching natural science subjects. They also include the development small-sized wheeled autonomous robot (MKAR) and its application in schools and educational centers of St. Petersburg for teaching robotics and related disciplines. In February 2025, on the basis of the project partner, the Academy of Digital Technologies, the School programming competitions MKAR, and 15 St. Petersburg schools received models of the robot.

    The development of these educational initiatives in cooperation between schools, colleges, universities, educational centers and industrial partners is supported by the government of St. Petersburg. For example, in September 2024, Governor Alexander Beglov highly praised the concept youth design bureaus, presented by the SPbPU PISh “Digital Engineering” at the opening of the first educational site at the College of Industrial Automation.

    School design bureaus are club-type platforms where children, under the guidance of experienced instructors, can learn engineering and solve real technical problems from industrial partners. The goal of the project is not only to give schoolchildren the opportunity to try themselves as engineers, but also to organize effective career guidance for students in grades 7–10. Participants in school design bureaus will be able to visit high-tech enterprises, listen to lectures by leading industry experts, and undergo internships at partners’ production sites.

    Industrial partners of the school design bureaus developed practice-oriented tasks for them and provided them with licensed software. The main partners of the project include: AEM-Technologies (part of the mechanical engineering division of the Rosatom State Corporation), Gazprom Neft, the Physical Rehabilitation organization, Ascon-Design Systems, and the Kronstadt Engineering Center. As the project develops, the number of partners will increase.

    The school design bureau project became one of the key topics of the plenary session of the strategic session “Creating a single space for modern digital education in St. Petersburg”.

    St. Petersburg has always been a leader in the field of education, and today’s forum is another step forward in providing high-quality and modern education for our children. Exchange of experience and discussion of current issues will help to determine the main areas of development and achieve the set goals, – Svetlana Bobrovskaya, Deputy Head of the General Education Department of the St. Petersburg Education Committee, opened the plenary session.

    Director of the Center for Continuing Professional Education of the SPbPU PISh Sergey Salkutsan spoke about the school design bureaus and answered questions from the audience about the project and tools of system digital engineering.

    “It is important to teach schoolchildren and students to understand the fundamental physical and chemical processes underlying the objects being modeled,” says Sergey Vladimirovich. “Mathematics and physics are critically important for understanding the structure of the world. Only by mastering these two disciplines will future engineers be able to effectively use software for modeling and design. It is also necessary to teach children not only to carry out technical assignments, but also to understand production technologies and the path of the product to the end consumer.”

    Sergei Salkutsan emphasized that school design bureaus are part of a continuous chain that continues in colleges and universities.

    Director of the Academy of Digital Technologies Valeria Zotova also noted the positive impact of the school design bureau project on the development of engineering education in the country: This will open up new opportunities for the development of technical creativity and engineering competencies in our students. Of particular importance is that each of you will have the opportunity to develop your own roadmap for opening school design bureaus in your educational institution. This is not just a theory – this is a real action plan that we will implement together.

    Then the official presentation of the school design bureau project took place and agreements on their opening were signed with 13 educational institutions of St. Petersburg. The signing was preceded by training of teachers of educational institutions, which took place at SPbPU. The teachers received certificates of advanced training during the ceremony.

    School design bureaus will be opened in the following educational institutions of St. Petersburg:

    Academy of Digital Technologies; Academy of Talents; Center for Children’s (Youthful) Technical Creativity “Start” of Nevsky District; Engineering and Technological School No. 777; School No. 707 of Nevsky District; School No. 422 of Kronstadt District; School No. 582 with in-depth study of English and Finnish languages of Primorsky District; Gymnasium No. 49 of Primorsky District; School No. 518 of Vyborg District; School No. 617 of Primorsky District; School No. 219 of Krasnoselsky District; School No. 500 of Pushkinsky District; School No. 258 with in-depth study of physics and chemistry of Kolpino District.

    Cooperation agreements were signed by the project partners: Ascon-Design Systems, Physical Rehabilitation, and AEM-Technologies.

    After signing, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of ASCON, Alexander Golikov, noted: The main motivation that guides us as a developer is that we want to live in a country that creates, not a consumer. In a country with a powerful industry, with its own aircraft, electronics, software. To achieve this, it is necessary to develop a culture of invention and engineering creativity at all stages of education, since all advanced developments are created by qualified specialists. School design bureaus are a point of attraction for future engineers, and we, ASCON, provide the necessary software tools for the implementation of engineering ideas.

    To implement the project, school design bureaus “Ascon-Design Systems” transferred licenses for full access to the software to schools.

    Training in school design bureaus will be launched in cycles, but the first launch is different from the others. Basic training began on March 27. Work on the first project, “Development of a housing for an electronic rehabilitation device for children,” commissioned by the Physical Rehabilitation organization, will begin on April 21. In May, the finished assembly will be submitted for testing and production, a championship of the school design bureau network will be held, and the first project will end with a presentation of the manufactured products and their transfer to the customer. Schoolchildren who successfully complete the training will receive certificates from Ascon-Design Systems confirming their skills. In the future, these certificates will be taken into account when entering Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University. The second task for schoolchildren by the fall of 2025 will be set by the partner of AEM-Technology.

    The development of school design bureaus was also one of the topics of the plenary part of the conference “Ecosystem of a specialized school: change management for technological sovereignty”, which was held at the project participant – school No. 258 with in-depth study of physics and chemistry in the Kolpino district of St. Petersburg. Engineer of the Advanced Engineering School of SPbPU “Digital Engineering” Tamara Korobova spoke about the launch of school design bureaus, highlighted the goals and objectives of the project, answered questions from teachers and took part in the discussion of current issues of specialized education for schoolchildren and the development of models of network interaction between educational organizations and industry partners.

    At the strategic session, students were able to immerse themselves in the tasks of future school design bureaus and try their hand at 3D modeling and printing.

    The leading engineering school of SPbPU “Digital Engineering” is developing three areas of development of design bureaus. Over the next year, we plan to methodically organize the activities of school bureaus, set up work with industrial partners and receive feedback from participants. Then, on the basis of the Polytechnic University, together with the Talent Academy, a bureau will be created that will be available to students of schools where there is no design bureau yet. The third area includes youth design bureaus based on secondary vocational education institutions, developed together with the College of Industrial Automation. Their activities are focused on in-depth study of the technological level of development and production of products. As part of their work, novice engineers should enter small-scale production, – summed up Sergey Salkutsan.

    The II All-Russian Digital Forum “From Lesson to Profession” was held as part of the XV St. Petersburg International Educational Forum. The second day of the event took place at the Polytechnic University. The co-organizers were the SPbPU PISh and School No. 619 of the Kalininsky District. More than 160 technical education specialists and heads of digital education centers from 33 regions of Russia took part.

    We have established a strong tradition of meeting, exchanging experience and practices. Within the framework of this forum, you will see the best of what St. Petersburg and other regions have to offer. And I am sure that you will remember the welcoming atmosphere of the Polytechnic University, and you will actively share the knowledge you have gained with your colleagues, – Pavel Rozov, Deputy Chairman of the St. Petersburg Education Committee, opened the event in a video address.

    Then the plenary session “National Policy in the Sphere of Digital Education” began. Natalia Gubkova, chief specialist of the Department of Information Technology and Digitalization of the Committee on Education of St. Petersburg, spoke about the influence of national projects on the work of digital education centers and the guidelines for the development of education until 2036.

    Experience of interaction with leaders of Russian industry for development of engineering education within the framework of the SPbPU PISh “Digital Engineering” program was presented by Mikhail Zhmailo, senior lecturer of the Higher School of Advanced Digital Technologies of the SPbPU PISh. He spoke about the practice-oriented model of polytechnic education, emphasized the need to develop modern educational tools and the importance of introducing advanced digital technologies in the education of young people at different levels. Mikhail Aleksandrovich noted the high interest of schools in participation in the project of development of school design bureaus and application in educational activities of a small-sized wheeled autonomous robot developed by engineers of the laboratory “Industrial Systems of Streaming Data Processing” (PSPOD) of the SPbPU PISh.

    Director of the Center for Advanced Professional Training Natalia Suddenkova gave a report on the implementation of the concept of continuous digital education in the context of developing cooperation between educational organizations and industrial partners, and also presented the project “My First Profession”.

    Director of the Academy of Digital Technologies Valeria Zotova highlighted the Academy’s projects and its role in the development of digital education and support of educational institutions, advanced training programs for teachers and managers.

    After the plenary session, the participants of the II All-Russian Digital Forum “From Lesson to Profession” visited the laboratories and scientific and technological spaces of SPbPU. Thus, in the laboratory “Industrial Systems of Streaming Data Processing” of the SPbPU PISh, teachers got acquainted with a model of a small-sized wheeled autonomous robot and learned more about its programming and the competencies of students that can be developed with its help.

    Senior Lecturer of the Higher School of Advanced Digital Technologies PISH SPbPU, Research Fellow of the Laboratory of Advanced Digital Technologies PISH SPbPU Georgy Vasilyanov presented guests a new version of the robot – MKAR 3.0, which was shown publicly for the first time. During the presentation, participants saw autonomous movement MKAR 2.0— version, already delivered to 15 schools in St. Petersburg, as well as the debut of MKAR 3.0 with improved sensors, modular design and support for ROS2 — the industry standard for robot control.

    Using the example of work Experimental Design Bureau of PISh SPbPU, opened within the framework VI International Forum “Advanced Digital and Manufacturing Technologies” In October 2024, participants became familiar with the implemented practices and approaches to designing high-tech products, which are planned to be replicated in the school design bureau project.

    The teachers also visited the Polytechnic Supercomputer Center and the Gazpromneft-Polytech Scientific and Educational Center on an excursion.

    And then the program of the II All-Russian Digital Forum “From Lesson to Profession” continued with a strategic session “Creating a Single Space for Modern Digital Education in St. Petersburg”, which was held by the Deputy Director for Educational and Methodological Work of the Academy of Digital Technologies Evgeniya Lineva.

    The session participants discussed the partnership, outlined development paths and prospects for further work.

    Read more about the events Here.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services, February 2025

    Source: US Bureau of Economic Analysis

    The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis announced today that the goods and services deficit was $122.7 billion in February, down $8.0 billion from $130.7 billion in January, revised.

    U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services Deficit
    Deficit: $122.7 Billion  –6.1%°
    Exports: $278.5 Billion  +2.9%°
    Imports: $401.1 Billion     0.0%°

    Next release: Tuesday, May 6, 2025

    (°) Statistical significance is not applicable or not measurable. Data adjusted for seasonality but not price changes

    Source: U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis; U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services, April 3, 2025

    Exports, Imports, and Balance (exhibit 1)

    February exports were $278.5 billion, $8.0 billion more than January exports. February imports were $401.1 billion, less than $0.1 billion less than January imports.

    The February decrease in the goods and services deficit reflected a decrease in the goods deficit of $8.8 billion to $147.0 billion and a decrease in the services surplus of $0.8 billion to $24.3 billion.

    Year-to-date, the goods and services deficit increased $117.1 billion, or 86.0 percent, from the same period in 2024. Exports increased $24.0 billion or 4.6 percent. Imports increased $141.2 billion or 21.4 percent.

    Three-Month Moving Averages (exhibit 2)

    The average goods and services deficit increased $14.8 billion to $117.1 billion for the three months ending in February.

    • Average exports increased $1.6 billion to $271.8 billion in February.
    • Average imports increased $16.5 billion to $389.0 billion in February.

    Year-over-year, the average goods and services deficit increased $50.1 billion from the three months ending in February 2024.

    • Average exports increased $10.2 billion from February 2024.
    • Average imports increased $60.3 billion from February 2024.

    Exports (exhibits 3, 6, and 7)

    Exports of goods increased $8.3 billion to $181.9 billion in February.

      Exports of goods on a Census basis increased $6.2 billion.

    • Industrial supplies and materials increased $3.0 billion.
      • Nonmonetary gold increased $3.2 billion.
      • Fuel oil decreased $1.0 billion.
    • Capital goods increased $2.7 billion.
      • Computer accessories increased $0.9 billion.
      • Civilian aircraft increased $0.5 billion.
    • Automotive vehicles, parts, and engines increased $1.6 billion.
      • Passenger cars increased $1.0 billion.
      • Trucks, buses, and special purpose vehicles increased $0.6 billion.
    • Other goods decreased $1.3 billion. (See the “Notice” for more information.)

      Net balance of payments adjustments increased $2.1 billion.

    Exports of services decreased $0.4 billion to $96.5 billion in February.

    • Transport decreased $0.3 billion.
    • Travel decreased $0.3 billion.
    • Government goods and services decreased $0.2 billion.
    • Financial services increased $0.2 billion.

    Imports (exhibits 4, 6, and 8)

    Imports of goods decreased $0.5 billion to $328.9 billion in February.

      Imports of goods on a Census basis decreased $0.6 billion.

    • Industrial supplies and materials decreased $4.2 billion.
      • Finished metal shapes decreased $2.6 billion.
      • Nonmonetary gold decreased $1.3 billion
    • Consumer goods increased $2.4 billion.
      • Cell phones and other household goods increased $1.5 billion.
      • Pharmaceutical preparations increased $1.2 billion.
    • Capital goods increased $1.0 billion.
      • Computers increased $0.7 billion.
      • Medical equipment increased $0.5 billion.
      • Civilian aircraft decreased $0.7 billion.

      Net balance of payments adjustments increased $0.1 billion.

    Imports of services increased $0.5 billion to $72.2 billion in February.

    • Travel increased $0.2 billion.
    • Charges for the use of intellectual property increased $0.1 billion.

    Real Goods in 2017 Dollars – Census Basis (exhibit 11)

    The real goods deficit decreased $6.9 billion, or 4.8 percent, to $135.4 billion in February, compared to a 4.4 percent decrease in the nominal deficit.

    • Real exports of goods increased $4.9 billion, or 3.4 percent, to $147.9 billion, compared to a 3.6 percent increase in nominal exports.
    • Real imports of goods decreased $2.0 billion, or 0.7 percent, to $283.3 billion, compared to a 0.2 percent decrease in nominal imports.

    Revisions

    Revisions to January exports

    • Exports of goods were revised up $0.8 billion.
    • Exports of services were revised down $0.2 billion.

    Revisions to January imports

    • Imports of goods were revised down $0.1 billion.
    • Imports of services were revised up $0.1 billion.

    Goods by Selected Countries and Areas: Monthly – Census Basis (exhibit 19)

    The February figures show surpluses, in billions of dollars, with South and Central America ($4.8), Netherlands ($4.1), United Kingdom ($3.4), Hong Kong ($2.4), Belgium ($0.8), Brazil ($0.4), and Saudi Arabia ($0.2). Deficits were recorded, in billions of dollars, with European Union ($30.9), China ($26.6), Switzerland ($18.8), Mexico ($16.8), Ireland ($14.0), Vietnam ($12.4), Taiwan ($8.7), Germany ($8.1), Canada ($7.3), India ($5.6), Japan ($5.2), Italy ($5.1), South Korea ($4.5), Malaysia ($3.1), Australia ($2.1), France ($1.5), Singapore ($1.1), and Israel ($0.7).

    • The deficit with Switzerland decreased $4.0 billion to $18.8 billion in February. Exports increased $0.7 billion to $2.5 billion and imports decreased $3.3 billion to $21.3 billion.
    • The balance with the United Kingdom shifted from a deficit of $0.5 billion in January to a surplus of $3.4 billion in February. Exports increased $3.3 billion to $9.5 billion and imports decreased $0.6 billion to $6.1 billion.
    • The deficit with the European Union increased $5.4 billion to $30.9 billion in February. Exports decreased $2.3 billion to $29.9 billion and imports increased $3.2 billion to $60.8 billion.

    All statistics referenced are seasonally adjusted; statistics are on a balance of payments basis unless otherwise specified. Additional statistics, including not seasonally adjusted statistics and details for goods on a Census basis, are available in exhibits 1-20b of this release. For information on data sources, definitions, and revision procedures, see the explanatory notes in this release. The full release can be found at www.census.gov/foreign-trade/Press-Release/current_press_release/index.html or www.bea.gov/data/intl-trade-investment/international-trade-goods-and-services. The full schedule is available in the Census Bureau’s Economic Briefing Room at www.census.gov/economic-indicators/ or on BEA’s website at www.bea.gov/news/schedule.

    Next release: May 6, 2025, at 8:30 a.m. EDT
    U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services, March 2025

    Notice

    Impact of Canada Border Services Agency’s (CBSA) Release of CBSA Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM)

    The CBSA introduced a new accounting system (CARM) on October 21, 2024. As a result, importers in Canada have experienced delays in filing shipment information. These delays affected the compilation of statistics on U.S. exports of goods to Canada for September 2024 through February 2025, which are derived from data compiled by Canada through the United States – Canada Data Exchange. A dollar estimate of the filing backlog is included in estimates for late receipts and, following the U.S. Census Bureau’s customary practice for late receipt estimates, is included in the export end-use category “Other goods” as well as in exports to Canada. This estimate will be replaced with the actual transactions reported by the Harmonized System classification in June 2025 with the release of “U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services, Annual Revision.” Until then, please refer to the supplemental spreadsheet “CARM Exports to Canada Corrections,” which provides a breakdown of the late receipts by 1-digit end-use category for statistics through 2024. This spreadsheet will be updated as late export transactions are received to reflect reassignments from the initial “Other goods” category to the appropriate 1-digit end-use category. Any 2025 impacts will be revised in June 2026.

    If you have questions or need additional information, please contact the Census Bureau, Economic Indicators Division, International Trade Macro Analysis Branch, on 800-549-0595, option 4, or at eid.international.trade.data@census.gov.

    Upcoming Updates to Goods and Services

    With the releases of the “U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services” report (FT-900) and the FT-900 Annual Revision on June 5, 2025, statistics on trade in goods, on both a Census basis and a balance of payments (BOP) basis, will be revised beginning with 2020 and statistics on trade in services will be revised beginning with 2018. The revised statistics for goods on a BOP basis and for services will also be included in the “U.S. International Transactions, 1st Quarter 2025 and Annual Update” report and in the international transactions interactive database, both to be released by BEA on June 24, 2025.

    Revised statistics on trade in goods will reflect:

    • Corrections and adjustments to previously published not seasonally adjusted statistics for goods on a Census basis.
    • End-use reclassifications of several commodities.
    • Recalculated seasonal and trading-day adjustments.
    • Newly available and revised source data on BOP adjustments, which are adjustments that BEA applies to goods on a Census basis to convert them to a BOP basis. See the “Goods (balance of payments basis)” section in the explanatory notes for more information.

    Revised statistics on trade in services will reflect:

    • Newly available and revised source data, primarily from BEA surveys of international services.
    • Corrections and adjustments to previously published not seasonally adjusted statistics.
    • Recalculated seasonal adjustments.
    • Revised temporal distributions of quarterly source data to monthly statistics. See the “Services” section in the explanatory notes for more information.

    A preview of BEA’s 2025 annual update of the International Transactions Accounts will be available in the Survey of Current Business later in April 2025.

    If you have questions or need additional information, please contact the Census Bureau, Economic Indicators Division, International Trade Macro Analysis Branch, on (800) 549-0595, option 4, or at eid.international.trade.data@census.gov or BEA, Balance of Payments Division, at InternationalAccounts@bea.gov.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: NASA Makes Progress on Advanced Drone Safety Management System

    Source: NASA

    From agriculture and law enforcement to entertainment and disaster response, industries are increasingly turning to drones for help, but the growing volume of these aircraft will require trusted safety management systems to maintain safe operations.
    NASA is testing a new software system to create an improved warning system – one that can predict hazards to drones before they occur. The In-Time Aviation Safety Management System (IASMS) will monitor, assess, and mitigate airborne risks in real time. But making sure that it can do all that requires extensive experimentation to see how its elements work together, including simulations and drone flight tests.
    “If everything is going as planned with your flight, you won’t notice your in-time aviation safety management system working,” said Michael Vincent, NASA acting deputy project manager with the System-Wide Safety project at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. “It’s before you encounter an unusual situation, like loss of navigation or communications, that the IASMS provides an alert to the drone operator.”
    The team completed a simulation in the Human-Autonomy Teaming Laboratory at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley on March 5 aimed at finding out how critical elements of the IASMS could be used in operational hurricane relief and recovery.
    During this simulation, 12 drone pilots completed three 30-minute sessions where they managed up to six drones flying beyond visual line of sight to perform supply drops to residents stranded after a severe hurricane. Additional drones flew scripted search and rescue operations and levee inspections in the background. Researchers collected data on pilot performance, mission success, workload, and perceptions of the experiences, as well as the system’s usability.
    This simulation is part of a longer-term strategy by NASA to advance this technology. The lessons learned from this study will help prepare for the project’s hurricane relief and recovery flight tests, planned for 2027.  
    As an example of this work, in the summer of 2024 NASA tested its IASMS during a series of drone flights in collaboration with the Ohio Department of Transportation in Columbus, Ohio, and in a separate effort, with three university-led teams.
    For the Ohio Department of Transportation tests, a drone flew with the NASA-developed IASMS software aboard, which communicated back to computers at NASA Langley. Those transmissions gave NASA researchers input on the system’s performance.

    NASA also conducted studies with The George Washington University (GWU), the University of Notre Dame, and Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). These occurred at the U.S. Army’s Fort Devens in Devens, Massachusetts with GWU; near South Bend, Indiana with Notre Dame; and in Richmond, Virginia with VCU. Each test included a variety of types of drones, flight scenarios, and operators.

    Each drone testing series involved a different mission for the drone to perform and different hazards for the system to avoid. Scenarios included, for example, how the drone would fly during a wildfire or how it would deliver a package in a city. A different version of the NASA IASMS was used to fit the scenario depending on the mission, or depending on the flight area.

    When used in conjunction with other systems such as NASA’s Unmanned Aircraft System Traffic Management, IASMS may allow for routine drone flights in the U.S. to become a reality. The IASMS adds an additional layer of safety for drones, assuring the reliability and trust if the drone is flying over a town on a routine basis that it remains on course while avoiding hazards along the way.
    “There are multiple entities who contribute to safety assurance when flying a drone,” Vincent said. “There is the person who’s flying the drone, the company who designs and manufactures the drone, the company operating the drone, and the Federal Aviation Administration, who has oversight over the entire National Airspace System. Being able to monitor, assess and mitigate risks in real time would make the risks in these situations much more secure.”
    All of this work is led by NASA’s System-Wide Safety project under the Airspace Operations and Safety program in support of the agency’s Advanced Air Mobility mission, which seeks to deliver data to guide the industry’s development of electric air taxis and drones.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: 3RD REGIONAL AVIATION MINISTERS MEETING

    Source:

    MINISTERIAL ADDRESS by the Minister of Works Transport & infrastructure Hon. Olo Afoa Fiti Vaai [22nd March 2025]

    Mr. Chairman, Honorable Viliame Gavoka, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Tourism of Fiji;

    Honorable Deputy Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Tonga;

    Fellow Ministers and Heads of delegations from our neighboring Pacific Communities and your respective delegations;

    Distinguished Partners and friends,

    Ladies and Gentlemen.

    It is a real privilege to meet you all in person in our 3rd Regional Aviation Ministers meeting as Samoa’s Minister for Civil Aviation.

    Samoa remains steadfast in its commitment to strengthening our aviation sector. We are dedicated to enhancing the safety, resilience, and efficiency of both our domestic and regional aviation systems. At the same time, we are focused on creating meaningful opportunities to foster the growth and development of our aviation workforce.

    We believe in Investing in our people and ensuring that our regulatory frameworks are robust, modern, and fit for purpose, fundamental to achieving Samoa’s long-term aviation aspirations.

    Samoa believes that strong national systems work best when supported by strong regional cooperation. We reconfirm our commitment to working collaboratively, in line with the vision of the Blue Pacific 2050 Strategy and the Pacific Regional Aviation Strategy.

    Together, we can meet the challenges and opportunities facing Pacific aviation and I am proud Samoa is on that journey with our Pacific brothers and sisters.

    Samoa is a strong supporter of PASO. We want to see PASO succeed because we recognise the critical role it plays in facilitating safe, secure, and sustainable aviation across the region. Regional mechanisms like PASO are essential, and Samoa will continue to support and engage constructively.

    Samoa is encouraged by recent efforts to explore opportunities to create pathways for our people—alongside other States—to be developed and nurtured as the regional regulators of tomorrow. Investing in the Pacific’s own capability will ensure our future is safe and secure.

    In terms of the PICASST Amendments, Samoa supports, in principle, the proposed amendments to the Pacific Islands Civil Aviation Safety and Security Treaty, in line with our prior endorsement at RAMM2 in 2022, Samoa, is currently engaged in our domestic review process and look forward to formally confirming our position in due course.

    We remain committed to playing an active role in regional aviation collaboration, while also advancing our national priorities. We look forward to working alongside all of you as partners and friends.

    Honourable Chairman, fellow ministers, distinguished delegates, partners, and friends of the Pacific region.

    Let me conclude by placing on record Samoa’s deep appreciation to the Forum member states, our respective Partners, and, most importantly, our neighbouring Island States, who assisted Samoa in hosting the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in October 2024.

    Your unwavering support through the secondment of personnel for logistics and overall aviation security at the airport, venues, accommodations and general operations allowed Samoa to successfully host the meeting as a true Pacific CHOGM.

    That, Mr. Chairman, is what the Pacific Way and True Regionalism are all about.

    Fa’afetai tele lava and soifua.

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    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Minutes – Wednesday, 2 April 2025 – Strasbourg – Final edition

    Source: European Parliament

    PV-10-2025-04-02

    EN

    EN

    iPlPv_Sit

    Minutes
    Wednesday, 2 April 2025 – Strasbourg

    IN THE CHAIR: Sophie WILMÈS
    Vice-President

    1. Opening of the sitting

    The sitting opened at 09:00.


    2. Negotiations ahead of Parliament’s first reading (Rule 72) (action taken)

    The decisions of the LIBE, TRAN and AGRI committees to enter into interinstitutional negotiations had been announced on 31 March 2025 (minutes of 31.3.2025, item 7).

    A request for a vote in Parliament had been formulated by the PfE, ECR, The Left and ESN groups pursuant to Rule 72(2), on the following decision by the LIBE Committee:

    – Proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing an EU talent pool (2023/0404(COD))

    The vote would take place the next day, 3 April 2025.

    A request for a vote in Parliament had been formulated by the PfE Group pursuant to Rule 72(2), on the following decision by the AGRI Committee:

    – Proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Decision 2003/17/EC as regards the equivalence of field inspections carried out in the Republic of Moldova on fodder plant seed-producing crops and on the equivalence of fodder plant seed produced in the Republic of Moldova, and as regards the equivalence of field inspections carried out in Ukraine on beet seed-producing crops and oil plant seed-producing crops and on the equivalence of beet seed and oil plant seed produced in Ukraine (2024/0027(COD))

    The vote would take place the next day, 3 April 2025.

    As there had not been any requests for a vote in relation to the other decisions pursuant to Rule 72(2), the committees responsible had been able to begin negotiations upon expiry of the deadline.


    3. European Steel and Metals Action Plan (debate)

    Council and Commission statements: European Steel and Metals Action Plan (2025/2633(RSP))

    Adam Szłapka (President-in-Office of the Council) and Stéphane Séjourné (Executive Vice-President of the Commission) made the statements.

    The following spoke: Dennis Radtke, on behalf of the PPE Group, Dan Nica, on behalf of the S&D Group, Julie Rechagneux, on behalf of the PfE Group, Elena Donazzan, on behalf of the ECR Group, Christophe Grudler, on behalf of the Renew Group, Bas Eickhout, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Marina Mesure, on behalf of The Left Group, René Aust, on behalf of the ESN Group, Christian Ehler, Mohammed Chahim, Tomasz Buczek, Beatrice Timgren, Oihane Agirregoitia Martínez, Sara Matthieu, who also answered a blue-card question from João Oliveira, Rudi Kennes, Susana Solís Pérez, Yannis Maniatis, Jadwiga Wiśniewska, Letizia Moratti, Marie-Pierre Vedrenne, Jens Geier, Michael Bloss, Angelika Winzig, Nicolás González Casares, Ondřej Krutílek, Juan Ignacio Zoido Álvarez, Tilly Metz, Elena Sancho Murillo, Valentina Palmisano and Adam Jarubas.

    IN THE CHAIR: Christel SCHALDEMOSE
    Vice-President

    The following spoke: Bruno Tobback, Beata Szydło, who also answered a blue-card question from Petr Bystron, Massimiliano Salini and Majdouline Sbai.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Dariusz Joński, Jonás Fernández, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Brigitte van den Berg, Ana Miranda Paz and Maria Zacharia.

    The following spoke: Stéphane Séjourné and Adam Szłapka.

    The debate closed.


    4. Energy-intensive industries (debate)

    Commission statement: Energy-intensive industries (2025/2536(RSP))

    The President made some clarifications on the organisational arrangements of the debate, as a new format was being trialled.

    Stéphane Séjourné (Executive Vice-President of the Commission) made the statement.

    The following spoke: Wouter Beke, on behalf of the PPE Group, Giorgio Gori, on behalf of the S&D Group, Jana Nagyová, on behalf of the PfE Group, Mariateresa Vivaldini, on behalf of the ECR Group, Brigitte van den Berg, on behalf of the Renew Group, Benedetta Scuderi, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Anthony Smith, on behalf of The Left Group, Markus Buchheit, on behalf of the ESN Group, Dan Nica, András Gyürk, Daniel Obajtek, Anna Stürgkh, Per Clausen, Anja Arndt, who also declined to take a blue-card question from Thomas Pellerin-Carlin, Kateřina Konečná, Radan Kanev, Jens Geier, who also answered a blue-card question from Davor Ivo Stier, Mélanie Disdier, who also answered a blue-card question from Thomas Pellerin-Carlin, Kris Van Dijck, Mirosława Nykiel, Bruno Gonçalves, who also answered a blue-card question from João Oliveira, Barbara Bonte, Marc Botenga, Tom Berendsen, Nicolás González Casares, Raffaele Stancanelli, Alexandr Vondra, Seán Kelly, Thomas Pellerin-Carlin, Anne-Sophie Frigout, Milan Mazurek, Pilar del Castillo Vera, Niels Fuglsang, Georg Mayer, Diego Solier, Sofie Eriksson, Mireia Borrás Pabón, Thomas Geisel and Christian Ehler.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Krzysztof Hetman, Maria Grapini, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Katri Kulmuni, Majdouline Sbai and Lukas Sieper.

    The following spoke: Stéphane Séjourné.

    Motions for resolutions tabled under Rule 136(2) to wind up the debate: minutes of 3.4.2025, item I.

    The debate closed.

    Vote: 3 April 2025.


    IN THE CHAIR: Roberta METSOLA
    President

    5. Progress in the UN-led efforts for the resumption of negotiations towards a solution to the Cyprus problem – Statement by the President

    Progress in the UN-led efforts for the resumption of negotiations towards a solution to the Cyprus problem – Statement by the President (2025/2649(RSP))

    The President made the statement.

    The following spoke: Loucas Fourlas, on behalf of the PPE Group, Costas Mavrides, on behalf of the S&D Group, Afroditi Latinopoulou, on behalf of the PfE Group, Geadis Geadi, on behalf of the ECR Group, Hilde Vautmans, on behalf of the Renew Group, Reinier Van Lanschot, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Giorgos Georgiou, on behalf of The Left Group, and René Aust, on behalf of the ESN Group.

    The debate closed.

    (The sitting was suspended for a few moments.)


    6. Resumption of the sitting

    The sitting resumed at 12:07.


    7. Voting time

    For detailed results of the votes, see also ‘Results of votes’ and ‘Results of roll-call votes’.


    7.1. Guidelines for the 2026 budget – Section III (vote)

    Report on general guidelines for the preparation of the 2026 budget, Section III – Commission [2024/2110(BUI)] – Committee on Budgets. Rapporteur: Andrzej Halicki (A10-0042/2025)

    The debate had taken place on 31 March 2025 (minutes of 31.3.2025, item 12).

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

    Adopted (P10_TA(2025)0051)

    The following had spoken:

    Michał Dworczyk, to move an oral amendment to paragraph 12. Parliament had not agreed to put the oral amendment to the vote as more than 39 Members had opposed it.

    (‘Results of votes’, item 1)


    7.2. Agreements on Financial Mechanisms for the period May 2021 – April 2028 (EEA: EU-Iceland-Liechtenstein-Norway; Norwegian: EU-Norway); Additional Protocols to EEC-Norway Agreement and to EEC-Iceland Agreement *** (vote)

    Recommendation on the draft Council decision on the conclusion, on behalf of the European Union, of the Agreement between the European Union, Iceland, the Principality of Liechtenstein and the Kingdom of Norway on an EEA Financial Mechanism for the period May 2021 – April 2028, the Agreement between the Kingdom of Norway and the European Union on a Norwegian Financial Mechanism for the period May 2021 – April 2028, the Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Kingdom of Norway and the Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and Iceland [10005/2024 – C10-0103/2024 – 2024/0052(NLE)] – Committee on International Trade. Rapporteur: Željana Zovko (A10-0036/2025)

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    DRAFT COUNCIL DECISION

    Approved (P10_TA(2025)0052)

    Parliament consented to the conclusion of the agreements and protocols.

    (‘Results of votes’, item 2)


    7.3. Protocol on the Implementation of the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Community and the Republic of Guinea-Bissau (2024-2029) *** (vote)

    Recommendation on the draft Council decision on the conclusion, on behalf of the European Union, of the Protocol on the implementation of the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Community and the Republic of Guinea-Bissau (2024–2029) [12475/2024 – C10-0108/2024 – 2024/0159(NLE)] – Committee on Fisheries. Rapporteur: Eric Sargiacomo (A10-0028/2025)

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    DRAFT COUNCIL DECISION

    Approved (P10_TA(2025)0053)

    Parliament consented to the conclusion of the agreement.

    The following had spoken:

    Before the vote, Eric Sargiacomo (rapporteur) to make a statement on his reports on the basis of Rule 165(4).

    (‘Results of votes’, item 3)


    7.4. Protocol on the Implementation of the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Community and the Republic of Guinea-Bissau (2024-2029) (Resolution) (vote)

    Report containing a motion for a non-legislative resolution on the draft Council decision on the conclusion, on behalf of the European Union, of the Implementing Protocol (2024–2029) to the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Community and the Republic of Guinea-Bissau [2024/0159M(NLE)] – Committee on Fisheries. Rapporteur: Eric Sargiacomo (A10-0040/2025)

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

    Adopted (P10_TA(2025)0054)

    (‘Results of votes’, item 4)


    7.5. EU-Bosnia and Herzegovina Agreement: cooperation between Eurojust and the authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina competent for judicial cooperation in criminal matters *** (vote)

    Recommendation on the draft Council decision on the conclusion on behalf of the European Union of the Agreement between the European Union and Bosnia and Herzegovina on the cooperation between the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation (Eurojust) and the authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina competent for judicial cooperation in criminal matters [COM(2024)0299 – 2024/0167(NLE)] – Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs. Rapporteur: Jaroslav Bžoch (A10-0027/2025)

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    DRAFT COUNCIL DECISION

    Approved (P10_TA(2025)0055)

    Parliament consented to the conclusion of the agreement.

    (‘Results of votes’, item 5)


    7.6. Strengthening the security of identity cards of Union citizens and of residence documents issued to Union citizens and their family members exercising their right of free movement * (vote)

    Report on the proposal for a Council regulation on strengthening the security of identity cards of Union citizens and of residence documents issued to Union citizens and their family members exercising their right of free movement [COM(2024)0316 – C10-0112/2024 – 2024/0187(CNS)] – Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs. Rapporteur: Malik Azmani (A10-0041/2025)

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    COMMISSION PROPOSAL TO THE COUNCIL

    Approved as amended (P10_TA(2025)0056)

    (‘Results of votes’, item 6)


    7.7. Implementation of the common foreign and security policy – annual report 2024 (vote)

    Report on the implementation of the common foreign and security policy – 2024 annual report [2024/2080(INI)] – Committee on Foreign Affairs. Rapporteur: David McAllister (A10-0010/2025)

    The debate had taken place on 1 April 2025 (minutes of 1.4.2025, item 9).

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

    Adopted (P10_TA(2025)0057)

    (‘Results of votes’, item 7)


    7.8. Implementation of the common security and defence policy – annual report 2024 (vote)

    Report on the implementation of the common security and defence policy – annual report 2024 [2024/2082(INI)] – Committee on Foreign Affairs. Rapporteur: Nicolás Pascual de la Parte (A10-0011/2025)

    The debate had taken place on 1 April 2025 (minutes of 1.4.2025, item 9).

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

    Adopted (P10_TA(2025)0058)

    (‘Results of votes’, item 8)


    7.9. Human rights and democracy in the world and the European Union’s policy on the matter – annual report 2024 (vote)

    Report on human rights and democracy in the world and the European Union’s policy on the matter – annual report 2024 [2024/2081(INI)] – Committee on Foreign Affairs. Rapporteur: Isabel Wiseler-Lima (A10-0012/2025)

    The debate had taken place on 1 April 2025 (minutes of 1.4.2025, item 10).

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

    Adopted (P10_TA(2025)0059)

    The following had spoken:

    Bernard Guetta, to move an oral amendment to paragraph 4. Parliament had agreed to put the oral amendment to the vote.

    (‘Results of votes’, item 9)

    (The sitting was suspended at 13:41.)


    IN THE CHAIR: Martin HOJSÍK
    Vice-President

    8. Resumption of the sitting

    The sitting resumed at 13:45.


    9. Approval of the minutes of the previous sitting

    The minutes of the previous sitting were approved.


    10. Social Europe: making life affordable, protecting jobs, wages and health for all (topical debate)

    The following spoke: Marie Toussaint to open the debate proposed by the Verts/ALE Group.

    The following spoke: Adam Szłapka (President-in-Office of the Council) and Costas Kadis (Member of the Commission).

    The following spoke: Nikolina Brnjac, on behalf of the PPE Group, Gabriele Bischoff, on behalf of the S&D Group, Jorge Buxadé Villalba, on behalf of the PfE Group, Lara Magoni, on behalf of the ECR Group, Jana Toom, on behalf of the Renew Group, Katrin Langensiepen, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Li Andersson, on behalf of The Left Group, Maravillas Abadía Jover, Estelle Ceulemans, Valérie Deloge, Marlena Maląg, Irena Joveva, Jaume Asens Llodrà, Leila Chaibi, Maria Zacharia, Tomislav Sokol, Camilla Laureti, Pál Szekeres, Georgiana Teodorescu, Eugen Tomac, Maria Ohisalo, Catarina Martins, Jan-Peter Warnke, Regina Doherty, Idoia Mendia, Isabella Tovaglieri, Francesco Torselli, Hristo Petrov, Gordan Bosanac, João Oliveira, Marc Angel, Mélanie Disdier, Nora Junco García, Engin Eroglu, Vicent Marzà Ibáñez, Marit Maij, Dick Erixon, Vytenis Povilas Andriukaitis, Jaak Madison and Johan Danielsson.

    The following spoke: Costas Kadis and Adam Szłapka.

    The debate closed.


    11. European oceans pact (debate)

    Council and Commission statements: European oceans pact (2025/2610(RSP))

    Adam Szłapka (President-in-Office of the Council) and Costas Kadis (Member of the Commission) made the statements.

    IN THE CHAIR: Victor NEGRESCU
    Vice-President

    The following spoke: Gabriel Mato, on behalf of the PPE Group, Christophe Clergeau, on behalf of the S&D Group, António Tânger Corrêa, on behalf of the PfE Group, Veronika Vrecionová, on behalf of the ECR Group, Stéphanie Yon-Courtin, on behalf of the Renew Group, Isabella Lövin, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Emma Fourreau, on behalf of The Left Group, Siegbert Frank Droese, on behalf of the ESN Group, Isabelle Le Callennec, André Rodrigues, France Jamet, Stephen Nikola Bartulica, Oihane Agirregoitia Martínez, Nikolas Farantouris, Carmen Crespo Díaz, who also answered a blue-card question from Ana Miranda Paz, Annalisa Corrado, André Rougé, Ana Vasconcelos, Sebastian Everding, Paulo Do Nascimento Cabral, who also answered a blue-card question from João Oliveira, Nicolás González Casares, Séverine Werbrouck, who also answered a blue-card question from Christophe Clergeau, Emma Wiesner, Jessica Polfjärd, Željana Zovko, Francisco José Millán Mon and Fredis Beleris.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Ana Miguel Pedro, Rosa Serrano Sierra, Ana Miranda Paz, Lukas Sieper, Nina Carberry, Thomas Bajada, João Oliveira, Giuseppe Lupo and Sofie Eriksson.

    The following spoke: Costas Kadis and Adam Szłapka.

    The debate closed.


    12. Recent legislative changes in Hungary and their impact on fundamental rights (debate)

    Council and Commission statements: Recent legislative changes in Hungary and their impact on fundamental rights (2025/2631(RSP))

    Adam Szłapka (President-in-Office of the Council) and Michael McGrath (Member of the Commission) made the statements.

    The following spoke: Zoltán Tarr, on behalf of the PPE Group, Csaba Molnár, on behalf of the S&D Group, Tamás Deutsch, on behalf of the PfE Group, Jacek Ozdoba, on behalf of the ECR Group, and Fabienne Keller, on behalf of the Renew Group (the President reminded the speaker of the rules on conduct), and Tineke Strik, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group.

    IN THE CHAIR: Antonella SBERNA
    Vice-President

    The following spoke: Konstantinos Arvanitis, on behalf of The Left Group, Zsuzsanna Borvendég, on behalf of the ESN Group, Adrián Vázquez Lázara, Marc Angel, Paolo Borchia, Paolo Inselvini, Raquel García Hermida-Van Der Walle, Daniel Freund, Ilaria Salis, who also declined to take a blue-card question from Enikő Győri, Milan Uhrík, who also answered a blue-card question from Lukas Sieper, Ľuboš Blaha, who also answered a blue-card question from Raquel García Hermida-Van Der Walle, Monika Hohlmeier, who also answered a blue-card question from Diana Iovanovici Şoşoacă, Krzysztof Śmiszek, who also declined to take a blue-card question from Jacek Ozdoba, Ondřej Knotek, Moritz Körner, Kim Van Sparrentak, Tomasz Froelich, Lukas Sieper, Michał Wawrykiewicz, who also answered a blue-card question from Ernő Schaller-Baross, Chloé Ridel, Fabrice Leggeri, Sigrid Friis, Mélissa Camara, who also answered a blue-card question from Jacek Ozdoba, Reinhold Lopatka, who also answered a blue-card question from Daniel Freund, Evin Incir, Jorge Buxadé Villalba, Rasmus Nordqvist, Regina Doherty, Matjaž Nemec, András László, who also answered a blue-card question from András Tivadar Kulja, Rosa Estaràs Ferragut and Dóra Dávid, who also answered a blue-card question from Annamária Vicsek.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Maria Walsh, Juan Fernando López Aguilar, Csaba Dömötör and Dainius Žalimas.

    The following spoke: Lukas Sieper, concerning what certain speakers had said.

    The following spoke: Michael McGrath.

    The debate closed.


    13. The importance of trans-European transport infrastructure in times of stalling economic growth and major threats to Europe’s security (debate)

    Council and Commission statements: The importance of trans-European transport infrastructure in times of stalling economic growth and major threats to Europe’s security (2025/2609(RSP))

    Apostolos Tzitzikostas (Member of the Commission) made the statement on behalf of the Commission.

    The following spoke: Jens Gieseke, on behalf of the PPE Group, Johan Danielsson, on behalf of the S&D Group, Roman Haider, on behalf of the PfE Group, Roberts Zīle, on behalf of the ECR Group, Jan-Christoph Oetjen, on behalf of the Renew Group, Kai Tegethoff, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Merja Kyllönen, on behalf of The Left Group, and Siegbert Frank Droese, on behalf of the ESN Group.

    IN THE CHAIR: Javi LÓPEZ
    Vice-President

    The following spoke: Dariusz Joński, Sérgio Gonçalves, Julien Leonardelli, Georgiana Teodorescu, Valérie Devaux, Stanislav Stoyanov, Luis-Vicențiu Lazarus, Sophia Kircher, who also answered a blue-card question from Bogdan Rzońca, François Kalfon, Rody Tolassy, Mario Mantovani, Thomas Geisel, Borja Giménez Larraz, Rosa Serrano Sierra, Ondřej Krutílek, Elena Nevado del Campo, Ştefan Muşoiu, who also answered a blue-card question from João Oliveira, Aurelijus Veryga, Nikolina Brnjac, Piotr Müller and Kosma Złotowski.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Nina Carberry, Sandra Gómez López, Annamária Vicsek, Antonella Sberna, Oihane Agirregoitia Martínez, João Oliveira, Lefteris Nikolaou-Alavanos and Francisco José Millán Mon.

    The following spoke: Apostolos Tzitzikostas.

    The debate closed.


    14. Outcome of the recent COP16 biodiversity negotiations in Rome (debate)

    Council and Commission statements: Outcome of the recent COP16 biodiversity negotiations in Rome (2025/2636(RSP))

    Jessika Roswall (Member of the Commission) made the statement on behalf of the Commission.

    The following spoke: Christine Schneider, on behalf of the PPE Group, César Luena, on behalf of the S&D Group, Mireia Borrás Pabón, on behalf of the PfE Group, Michele Picaro, on behalf of the ECR Group, Gerben-Jan Gerbrandy, on behalf of the Renew Group, Jutta Paulus, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Carola Rackete, on behalf of The Left Group, Sérgio Humberto, who also answered a blue-card question from João Oliveira, Antonio Decaro, Michal Wiezik, Pär Holmgren and Manuela Ripa.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Seán Kelly and João Oliveira.

    The following spoke: Jessika Roswall.

    The debate closed.


    15. Delivering on the EU Roma Strategy and the fight against discrimination in the EU (debate)

    Council and Commission statements: Delivering on the EU Roma Strategy and the fight against discrimination in the EU (2025/2611(RSP))

    Hadja Lahbib (Member of the Commission) made the statement on behalf of the Commission.

    IN THE CHAIR: Younous OMARJEE
    Vice-President

    The following spoke: Zoltán Tarr, on behalf of the PPE Group, Murielle Laurent, on behalf of the S&D Group, Elisabeth Dieringer, on behalf of the PfE Group, Alessandro Ciriani, on behalf of the ECR Group, Hristo Petrov, on behalf of the Renew Group, Alice Kuhnke, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Estrella Galán, on behalf of The Left Group, Milan Mazurek, on behalf of the ESN Group, Loránt Vincze, Francisco Assis, who also answered a blue-card question from João Oliveira, Georgiana Teodorescu, Nicolae Ştefănuță, Tomáš Zdechovský, Marcos Ros Sempere, Reinhold Lopatka and Juan Fernando López Aguilar.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Silvia Sardone, Isabella Tovaglieri, Katrin Langensiepen and João Oliveira.

    The following spoke: Hadja Lahbib.

    The debate closed.


    16. Composition of committees and delegations

    The non-attached Members had notified the President of the following decisions changing the composition of the committees and delegations:

    – Delegation to the EU-Montenegro Stabilisation and Association Parliamentary Committee: Grzegorz Braun

    – Delegation to the OACPS-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly: Kateřina Konečná

    The decisions took effect as of that day.


    17. Threat to freedom of expression in Algeria: the five-year prison sentence of French writer Boualem Sansal (debate)

    Commission statement: Threat to freedom of expression in Algeria: the five-year prison sentence of French writer Boualem Sansal (2025/2655(RSP))

    Hadja Lahbib (Member of the Commission) made the statement.

    The following spoke: Céline Imart, on behalf of the PPE Group, Emma Rafowicz, on behalf of the S&D Group, Gilles Pennelle, on behalf of the PfE Group, Bernard Guetta, on behalf of the Renew Group, and Alexander Sell, on behalf of the ESN Group.

    The following spoke: Hadja Lahbib.

    The debate closed.


    18. Debate on cases of breaches of human rights, democracy and the rule of law (debate)

    (For the titles and authors of the motions for resolutions, see minutes of 3.4.2025, item I.)


    18.1. Prosecution of journalists in Cameroon, notably the cases of Amadou Vamoulké, Kingsley Fomunyuy Njoka, Mancho Bibixy, Thomas Awah Junior, Tsi Conrad

    Motions for resolutions B10-0230/2025, B10-0231/2025, B10-0232/2025, B10-0233/2025, B10-0234/2025, B10-0235/2025, B10-0236/2025 and B10-0237/2025 (2025/2627(RSP))

    Tomáš Zdechovský, Marta Temido, Catarina Vieira, Rima Hassan and Silvia Sardone introduced their groups’ motions for resolutions.

    The following spoke: Hannes Heide, on behalf of the S&D Group, and Marco Tarquinio.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Lukas Sieper.

    The following spoke: Hadja Lahbib (Member of the Commission).

    The debate closed.

    Vote: 3 April 2025.


    18.2. Execution spree in Iran and the confirmation of the death sentences of activists Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani

    Motions for resolutions B10-0220/2025, B10-0222/2025, B10-0224/2025, B10-0225/2025, B10-0226/2025 and B10-0228/2025 (2025/2628(RSP))

    Danuše Nerudová, Francisco Assis, Veronika Vrecionová, Helmut Brandstätter, Hannah Neumann and Matthieu Valet introduced their groups’ motions for resolutions.

    The following spoke: Milan Zver, on behalf of the PPE Group, Daniel Attard, on behalf of the S&D Group, Petras Auštrevičius, on behalf of the Renew Group, Davor Ivo Stier and Evin Incir.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Tiago Moreira de Sá.

    The following spoke: Hadja Lahbib (Member of the Commission).

    The debate closed.

    Vote: 3 April 2025.


    18.3. Immediate risk of further repression by Lukashenka’s regime in Belarus – threats from the Investigative Committee

    Motions for resolutions B10-0218/2025, B10-0219/2025, B10-0221/2025, B10-0223/2025, B10-0227/2025 and B10-0229/2025 (2025/2629(RSP))

    Miriam Lexmann, Małgorzata Gosiewska, Helmut Brandstätter, Mārtiņš Staķis and Merja Kyllönen introduced their groups’ motions for resolutions.

    The following spoke: Michał Szczerba, on behalf of the PPE Group, Vytenis Povilas Andriukaitis, on behalf of the S&D Group, Dainius Žalimas, on behalf of the Renew Group, and Petar Volgin, on behalf of the ESN Group.

    The following spoke: Hadja Lahbib (Member of the Commission).

    The debate closed.

    Vote: 3 April 2025.


    19. Explanations of vote


    19.1. Implementation of the common foreign and security policy – annual report 2024 (A10-0010/2025 – David McAllister) (oral explanations of vote)

    Petar Volgin


    19.2. Implementation of the common security and defence policy – annual report 2024 (A10-0011/2025 – Nicolás Pascual de la Parte) (oral explanations of vote)

    Kathleen Funchion, Lynn Boylan


    19.3. Written explanations of vote

    Explanations of vote submitted in writing under Rule 201 appear on the Members’ pages on Parliament’s website.


    20. Agenda of the next sitting

    The next sitting would be held the following day, 3 April 2025, starting at 09:00. The agenda was available on Parliament’s website.


    21. Approval of the minutes of the sitting

    In accordance with Rule 208(3), the minutes of the sitting would be put to the House for approval at the beginning of the afternoon of the next sitting.


    22. Closure of the sitting

    The sitting closed at 21:27.


    LIST OF DOCUMENTS SERVING AS A BASIS FOR THE DEBATES AND DECISIONS OF PARLIAMENT


    I. Motions for resolutions tabled

    Prosecution of journalists in Cameroon, notably the cases of Amadou Vamoulké, Kingsley Fomunyuy Njoka, Mancho Bibixy, Thomas Awah Junior, Tsi Conrad

    The following Members or political groups had requested that a debate be held, in accordance with Rule 150, on the following motions for resolutions:

    on the prosecution of journalists in Cameroon, notably the cases of Amadou Vamoulké, Kingsley Fomunyuy Njoka, Mancho Bibixy, Thomas Awah Junior and Tsi Conrad (B10-0230/2025) (2025/2627(RSP))
    Rima Hassan
    on behalf of The Left Group

    on the prosecution of journalists in Cameroon, notably the cases of Amadou Vamoulké, Kingsley Fomunyuy Njoka, Mancho Bibixy, Thomas Awah Junior and Tsi Conrad (B10-0231/2025) (2025/2627(RSP))
    Tomasz Froelich, Alexander Sell, Petr Bystron
    on behalf of the ESN Group

    on the prosecution of journalists in Cameroon, notably the cases of Amadou Vamoulké, Kingsley Fomunyuy Njoka, Mancho Bibixy, Thomas Awah Junior and Tsi Conrad (B10-0232/2025) (2025/2627(RSP))
    Catarina Vieira, Mounir Satouri, Maria Ohisalo, Ville Niinistö, Nicolae Ştefănuță
    on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

    on the prosecution of journalists in Cameroon, notably the cases of Amadou Vamoulké, Kingsley Fomunyuy Njoka, Mancho Bibixy, Thomas Awah Junior and Tsi Conrad (B10-0233/2025) (2025/2627(RSP))
    Yannis Maniatis, Francisco Assis, Marta Temido
    on behalf of the S&D Group

    on the prosecution of journalists in Cameroon, notably the cases of Amadou Vamoulké, Kingsley Fomunyuy Njoka, Mancho Bibixy, Thomas Awah Junior and Tsi Conrad (B10-0234/2025) (2025/2627(RSP))
    Silvia Sardone, Susanna Ceccardi, Roberto Vannacci, Nikola Bartůšek
    on behalf of the PfE Group

    on the prosecution of journalists in Cameroon, notably the cases of Amadou Vamoulké, Kingsley Fomunyuy Njoka, Mancho Bibixy, Thomas Awah Junior and Tsi Conrad (B10-0235/2025) (2025/2627(RSP))
    Jan-Christoph Oetjen, Oihane Agirregoitia Martínez, Petras Auštrevičius, Malik Azmani, Dan Barna, Olivier Chastel, Engin Eroglu, Svenja Hahn, Karin Karlsbro, Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Urmas Paet, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, Hilde Vautmans, Lucia Yar
    on behalf of the Renew Group

    on the prosecution of journalists in Cameroon, notably the cases of Amadou Vamoulké, Kingsley Fomunyuy Njoka, Mancho Bibixy, Thomas Awah Junior and Tsi Conrad (B10-0236/2025) (2025/2627(RSP))
    Sebastião Bugalho, Tomáš Zdechovský, Michael Gahler, Isabel Wiseler-Lima, Michał Wawrykiewicz, Tomas Tobé, Luděk Niedermayer, Seán Kelly, Vangelis Meimarakis, Andrey Kovatchev, Wouter Beke, Danuše Nerudová, Loránt Vincze, Jessica Polfjärd, Łukasz Kohut, Antonio López-Istúriz White, Miriam Lexmann, Inese Vaidere
    on behalf of the PPE Group

    on the prosecution of journalists in Cameroon, notably the cases of Amadou Vamoulké, Kingsley Fomunyuy Njoka, Mancho Bibixy, Thomas Awah Junior and Tsi Conrad (B10-0237/2025) (2025/2627(RSP))
    Adam Bielan, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Ondřej Krutílek, Veronika Vrecionová, Małgorzata Gosiewska, Alexandr Vondra, Waldemar Tomaszewski, Assita Kanko, Ivaylo Valchev, Joachim Stanisław Brudziński
    on behalf of the ECR Group

    Execution spree in Iran and the confirmation of the death sentences of activists Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani

    The following Members or political groups had requested that a debate be held, in accordance with Rule 150, on the following motions for resolutions:

    on the execution spree in Iran and confirmation of the death sentences of activists Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani (B10-0220/2025) (2025/2628(RSP))
    Hannah Neumann, Mounir Satouri, Erik Marquardt, Catarina Vieira, Ville Niinistö, Nicolae Ştefănuță, Mélissa Camara, Maria Ohisalo
    on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

    on the execution spree in Iran and the confirmation of the death sentences of activists Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani (B10-0222/2025) (2025/2628(RSP))
    Matthieu Valet, Pierre-Romain Thionnet, Nikola Bartůšek, Susanna Ceccardi, Silvia Sardone
    on behalf of the PfE Group

    on the execution spree in Iran and confirmation of the death sentences of activists Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani (B10-0224/2025) (2025/2628(RSP))
    Helmut Brandstätter, Oihane Agirregoitia Martínez, Abir Al-Sahlani, Petras Auštrevičius, Malik Azmani, Dan Barna, Olivier Chastel, Veronika Cifrová Ostrihoňová, Engin Eroglu, Bart Groothuis, Svenja Hahn, Karin Karlsbro, Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Nathalie Loiseau, Jan-Christoph Oetjen, Urmas Paet, Hilde Vautmans, Sophie Wilmès, Lucia Yar
    on behalf of the Renew Group

    on the execution spree in Iran and the confirmation of the death sentences of activists Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani (B10-0225/2025) (2025/2628(RSP))
    Yannis Maniatis, Francisco Assis, Daniel Attard, Evin Incir
    on behalf of the S&D Group

    on the execution spree in Iran and confirmation of the death sentences of activists Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani (B10-0226/2025) (2025/2628(RSP))
    Mariusz Kamiński, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Michał Dworczyk, Małgorzata Gosiewska, Ondřej Krutílek, Veronika Vrecionová, Waldemar Tomaszewski, Alexandr Vondra, Aurelijus Veryga, Assita Kanko
    on behalf of the ECR Group

    on the execution spree in Iran and confirmation of the death sentences of activists Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani (B10-0228/2025) (2025/2628(RSP))
    Sebastião Bugalho, Loucas Fourlas, Michael Gahler, Isabel Wiseler-Lima, Michał Wawrykiewicz, Tomas Tobé, Luděk Niedermayer, Seán Kelly, Vangelis Meimarakis, Andrey Kovatchev, Wouter Beke, Danuše Nerudová, Loránt Vincze, Jessica Polfjärd, Łukasz Kohut, Antonio López-Istúriz White, Tomáš Zdechovský, Miriam Lexmann, Inese Vaidere
    on behalf of the PPE Group

    Immediate risk of further repression by Lukashenka’s regime in Belarus – threats from the Investigative Committee

    The following Members or political groups had requested that a debate be held, in accordance with Rule 150, on the following motions for resolutions:

    on the immediate risk of further repression by Lukashenka’s regime in Belarus: threats from the Investigative Committee (B10-0218/2025) (2025/2629(RSP))
    Merja Kyllönen
    on behalf of The Left Group

    on the immediate risk of further repression by Lukashenka’s regime in Belarus – threats from the Investigative Committee (B10-0219/2025) (2025/2629(RSP))
    Mārtiņš Staķis, Maria Ohisalo, Mounir Satouri, Lena Schilling, Markéta Gregorová, Catarina Vieira, Nicolae Ştefănuță, Ville Niinistö, Sergey Lagodinsky
    on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

    on the immediate risk of further repression by Lukashenka’s regime in Belarus: threats from the Investigative Committee (B10-0221/2025) (2025/2629(RSP))
    Yannis Maniatis, Francisco Assis, Robert Biedroń
    on behalf of the S&D Group

    on the immediate risk of further repression by Lukashenka’s regime in Belarus – threats from the Investigative Committee (B10-0223/2025) (2025/2629(RSP))
    Adam Bielan, Małgorzata Gosiewska, Mariusz Kamiński, Michał Dworczyk, Maciej Wąsik, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Ondřej Krutílek, Veronika Vrecionová, Alexandr Vondra, Assita Kanko, Aurelijus Veryga, Rihards Kols, Joachim Stanisław Brudziński, Ivaylo Valchev, Roberts Zīle
    on behalf of the ECR Group

    on the immediate risk of further repression by Lukashenka’s regime in Belarus – threats from the Investigative Committee (B10-0227/2025) (2025/2629(RSP))
    Michał Kobosko, Oihane Agirregoitia Martínez, Petras Auštrevičius, Malik Azmani, Dan Barna, Helmut Brandstätter, Olivier Chastel, Veronika Cifrová Ostrihoňová, Engin Eroglu, Svenja Hahn, Karin Karlsbro, Ľubica Karvašová, Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Jan-Christoph Oetjen, Urmas Paet, Hilde Vautmans, Lucia Yar, Dainius Žalimas
    on behalf of the Renew Group

    on the immediate risk of further repression by Lukashenka’s regime in Belarus: threats from the investigative Committee (B10-0229/2025) (2025/2629(RSP))
    Sebastião Bugalho, Miriam Lexmann, Michael Gahler, Isabel Wiseler-Lima, Michał Wawrykiewicz, Tomas Tobé, Dariusz Joński, Luděk Niedermayer, Seán Kelly, Vangelis Meimarakis, Andrey Kovatchev, Wouter Beke, Danuše Nerudová, Loránt Vincze, Jessica Polfjärd, Sandra Kalniete, Łukasz Kohut, Antonio López-Istúriz White, Tomáš Zdechovský, Inese Vaidere
    on behalf of the PPE Group


    II. Delegated acts (Rule 114(2))

    Draft delegated acts forwarded to Parliament

    – Commission Delegated Regulation correcting certain language versions of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/857 supplementing Directive 2013/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to regulatory technical standards specifying a standardised methodology and a simplified standardised methodology to evaluate the risks arising from potential changes in interest rates that affect both the economic value of equity and the net interest income of an institution’s non-trading book activities (C(2025)01555 – 2025/2614(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 3 months from the date of receipt of 17 March 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ECON

    – Commission Delegated Regulation correcting the Dutch language version of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/945 on unmanned aircraft systems and on third-country operators of unmanned aircraft systems (C(2025)01614 – 2025/2625(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 24 March 2025

    referred to committee responsible: TRAN

    – Commission Delegated Regulation correcting Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/273 as regards the import of wine originating in Canada (C(2025)01628 – 2025/2617(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 19 March 2025

    referred to committee responsible: AGRI

    – Commission Delegated Regulation supplementing Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 of the European Parliament and of the Council by establishing the methodology for calculation and verification of rates for recycling efficiency and recovery of materials from waste batteries, and the format for the documentation (C(2025)01674 – 2025/2621(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 3 months from the date of receipt of 21 March 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ENVI
    opinion: ITRE, IMCO

    – Commission Delegated Regulation supplementing Regulation (EU) 2022/2554 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to regulatory technical standards specifying the elements that a financial entity has to determine and assess when subcontracting ICT services supporting critical or important functions (C(2025)01682 – 2025/2623(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 3 months from the date of receipt of 24 March 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ECON

    – Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) amending Regulation (EU) No 691/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards investments on climate change mitigation and introducing the classification of environmental purposes (C(2025)01777 – 2025/2643(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 26 March 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ENVI

    – Commission Delegated Regulation supplementing Regulation (EU) 2024/1449 of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the Reform and Growth Facility for the Western Balkans by setting out the elements of the scoreboard for the Reform and Growth Facility (C(2025)01810 – 2025/2651(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 1 month from the date of receipt of 28 March 2025

    referred to committee responsible: AFET, BUDG

    – Commission Delegated Regulation correcting Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/126 supplementing Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 of the European Parliament and of the Council with additional requirements for certain types of intervention specified by Member States in their CAP Strategic Plans for the period 2023 to 2027 under that Regulation as well as rules on the ratio for the good agricultural and environmental conditions (GAEC) standard 1 (C(2025)01846 – 2025/2652(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 31 March 2025

    referred to committee responsible: AGRI
    opinion: ENVI

    Draft delegated act for which the period for raising objections had been extended

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/1122 supplementing Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the functioning of the Union Registry C(2025)00814 – 2025/2562(DEA)

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 11 February 2025

    Extension of the deadline for raising objections: 2 months at the request of the Council

    referred to committee responsible: ENVI
    opinion: ITRE


    III. Implementing measures (Rule 115)

    Draft implementing measures falling under the regulatory procedure with scrutiny forwarded to Parliament

    – Commission Regulation (EU) amending Regulation (EU) No 142/2011 as regards requirements for the import of used cooking oil (D098112/02 – 2025/2615(RPS) – deadline: 18 June 2025)
    referred to committee responsible: ENVI

    – Commission Regulation amending Annexes II and III to Regulation (EC) No 396/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards maximum residue levels for cyantraniliprole, cyflumetofen, deltamethrin, mefentrifluconazole, mepiquat and oxathiapiprolin in or on certain products (D102376/03 – 2025/2626(RPS) – deadline: 26 May 2025)
    referred to committee responsible: ENVI

    – Commission Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards carcinogens, germ cell mutagens or reproductive toxicants subject to restrictions (D102504/02 – 2025/2607(RPS) – deadline: 11 June 2025)
    referred to committee responsible: ENVI
    opinion: ITRE, IMCO

    – Commission Regulation amending Annexes II, III and IV to Regulation (EC) No 396/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards maximum residue levels for amidosulfuron, azoxystrobin, hexythiazox, isoxaben, picloram, propamocarb, sodium silver thiosulfate and tefluthrin in or on certain products (D105252/02 – 2025/2622(RPS) – deadline: 21 May 2025)
    referred to committee responsible: ENVI

    – Commission Regulation amending Annexes II, III and V to Regulation (EC) No 396/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards maximum residue levels for chlorpropham, fuberidazole, ipconazole, methoxyfenozide, S-metolachlor and triflusulfuron in or on certain products (D105253/03 – 2025/2624(RPS) – deadline: 25 May 2025)
    referred to committee responsible: ENVI

    – Commission Regulation amending Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 1334/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the inclusion of Naringenin and 2‐methyl‐1‐(2‐(5‐(p‐tolyl)‐1H‐imidazol‐2‐yl)piperidin‐1‐yl)butan‐1‐one in the Union list of flavourings (D105330/02 – 2025/2620(RPS) – deadline: 21 May 2025)
    referred to committee responsible: ENVI

    – Commission Regulation amending Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the use of sodium ascorbate (E 301) in vitamin A preparations intended for infant formula and follow-on formula (D105364/02 – 2025/2619(RPS) – deadline: 21 May 2025)
    referred to committee responsible: ENVI

    – Commission Regulation amending Regulation (EU) 2023/1803 as regards International Financial Reporting Standards 1, 7, 9 and 10, and International Accounting Standard 7 (Text with EEA relevance) (D105674/01 – 2025/2616(RPS) – deadline: 11 June 2025)
    referred to committee responsible: ECON
    opinion: JURI


    IV. Transfers of appropriations and budgetary decisions

    In accordance with Article 31(1) of the Financial Regulation, the Committee on Budgets had decided to approve the Commission’s transfer of appropriations DEC 02/2025 – Section III – Commission.

    In accordance with Article 31(6) of the Financial Regulation, the Council of the European Union had decided to approve the European Commission’s transfer of appropriations DEC 02/2025 – Section III – Commission.

    In accordance with Article 31(6) of the Financial Regulation, the Council of the European Union had decided to approve transfer of appropriations 1-DEC/2025 – Section IV – Court of Justice.


    In accordance with Article 31(6) of the Financial Regulation, the Council of the European Union had decided to approve transfer of appropriations DEC-01/T/2025 – Section V – Court of Auditors.

    In accordance with Articles 31 and 49 of the Financial Regulation, the Committee on Budgets had decided to approve transfer of appropriations 1-DEC – Section IV – Court of Justice.

    In accordance with Articles 31 and 49 of the Financial Regulation, the Committee on Budgets had decided to approve transfer of appropriations V/DEC-01/T/25 – Section V – Court of Auditors.


    V. Documents received

    The following documents had been received from other institutions:

    – Proposal for transfer of appropriations DEC 03/2025 – Section III – Commission (N10-0011/2025 – C10-0050/2025 – 2025/2066(GBD))
    referred to committee responsible: BUDG

    – Proposal for transfer of appropriations DEC 04/2025 – Section III – Commission (N10-0012/2025 – C10-0053/2025 – 2025/2068(GBD))
    referred to committee responsible: BUDG


    ATTENDANCE REGISTER

    Present:

    Aaltola Mika, Abadía Jover Maravillas, Adamowicz Magdalena, Aftias Georgios, Agirregoitia Martínez Oihane, Agius Peter, Agius Saliba Alex, Alexandraki Galato, Allione Grégory, Al-Sahlani Abir, Anadiotis Nikolaos, Anderson Christine, Andersson Li, Andresen Rasmus, Andrews Barry, Andriukaitis Vytenis Povilas, Androuët Mathilde, Angel Marc, Annemans Gerolf, Annunziata Lucia, Arias Echeverría Pablo, Arimont Pascal, Arłukowicz Bartosz, Arnaoutoglou Sakis, Arndt Anja, Arvanitis Konstantinos, Asens Llodrà Jaume, Assis Francisco, Attard Daniel, Aubry Manon, Auštrevičius Petras, Axinia Adrian-George, Azmani Malik, Bajada Thomas, Baljeu Jeannette, Ballarín Cereza Laura, Bardella Jordan, Barley Katarina, Barna Dan, Barrena Arza Pernando, Bartulica Stephen Nikola, Bartůšek Nikola, Bausemer Arno, Bay Nicolas, Bay Christophe, Beke Wouter, Beleris Fredis, Bellamy François-Xavier, Benifei Brando, Benjumea Benjumea Isabel, Beňová Monika, Bentele Hildegard, Berendsen Tom, Berger Stefan, Berlato Sergio, Bernhuber Alexander, Biedroń Robert, Bielan Adam, Bischoff Gabriele, Blaha Ľuboš, Blinkevičiūtė Vilija, Blom Rachel, Bloss Michael, Bocheński Tobiasz, Boeselager Damian, Bogdan Ioan-Rareş, Bonaccini Stefano, Bonte Barbara, Borchia Paolo, Borrás Pabón Mireia, Borvendég Zsuzsanna, Borzan Biljana, Bosanac Gordan, Boßdorf Irmhild, Bosse Stine, Botenga Marc, Boyer Gilles, Boylan Lynn, Brandstätter Helmut, Brasier-Clain Marie-Luce, Braun Grzegorz, Brejza Krzysztof, Bricmont Saskia, Brnjac Nikolina, Brudziński Joachim Stanisław, Buchheit Markus, Buczek Tomasz, Buda Daniel, Buda Waldemar, Budka Borys, Bugalho Sebastião, Buła Andrzej, Bullmann Udo, Burkhardt Delara, Buxadé Villalba Jorge, Bystron Petr, Bžoch Jaroslav, Camara Mélissa, Canfin Pascal, Carberry Nina, Cârciu Gheorghe, Carême Damien, Casa David, Caspary Daniel, Castillo Laurent, del Castillo Vera Pilar, Cavazzini Anna, Cavedagna Stefano, Ceccardi Susanna, Cepeda José, Ceulemans Estelle, Chahim Mohammed, Chaibi Leila, Chastel Olivier, Chinnici Caterina, Christensen Asger, Cifrová Ostrihoňová Veronika, Ciriani Alessandro, Cisint Anna Maria, Clausen Per, Clergeau Christophe, Cormand David, Corrado Annalisa, Costanzo Vivien, Cotrim De Figueiredo João, Cowen Barry, Cremer Tobias, Crespo Díaz Carmen, Cristea Andi, Crosetto Giovanni, Cunha Paulo, Dahl Henrik, Danielsson Johan, Dávid Dóra, David Ivan, de la Hoz Quintano Raúl, Della Valle Danilo, Deloge Valérie, De Masi Fabio, De Meo Salvatore, Demirel Özlem, Deutsch Tamás, Devaux Valérie, Dibrani Adnan, Diepeveen Ton, Dieringer Elisabeth, Dîncu Vasile, Di Rupo Elio, Disdier Mélanie, Dobrev Klára, Doherty Regina, Doleschal Christian, Dömötör Csaba, Do Nascimento Cabral Paulo, Donazzan Elena, Dorfmann Herbert, Dostalova Klara, Dostál Ondřej, Droese Siegbert Frank, Düpont Lena, Dworczyk Michał, Ecke Matthias, Ehler Christian, Ehlers Marieke, Eriksson Sofie, Erixon Dick, Eroglu Engin, Estaràs Ferragut Rosa, Everding Sebastian, Ezcurra Almansa Alma, Falcă Gheorghe, Falcone Marco, Farantouris Nikolas, Farreng Laurence, Farský Jan, Ferber Markus, Ferenc Viktória, Fernández Jonás, Fidanza Carlo, Fiocchi Pietro, Firea Gabriela, Firmenich Ruth, Fita Claire, Flanagan Luke Ming, Fourlas Loucas, Fourreau Emma, Fragkos Emmanouil, Freund Daniel, Frigout Anne-Sophie, Friis Sigrid, Fritzon Heléne, Froelich Tomasz, Fuglsang Niels, Funchion Kathleen, Furet Angéline, Furore Mario, Gahler Michael, Gál Kinga, Galán Estrella, Gálvez Lina, Gambino Alberico, García Hermida-Van Der Walle Raquel, Garraud Jean-Paul, Gasiuk-Pihowicz Kamila, Geadi Geadis, Gedin Hanna, Geese Alexandra, Geier Jens, Geisel Thomas, Gemma Chiara, Georgiou Giorgos, Gerbrandy Gerben-Jan, Germain Jean-Marc, Gerzsenyi Gabriella, Geuking Niels, Gieseke Jens, Giménez Larraz Borja, Girauta Vidal Juan Carlos, Glavak Sunčana, Glück Andreas, Glucksmann Raphaël, Goerens Charles, Gomart Christophe, Gomes Isilda, Gómez López Sandra, Gonçalves Bruno, Gonçalves Sérgio, González Casares Nicolás, González Pons Esteban, Gori Giorgio, Gosiewska Małgorzata, Gotink Dirk, Gozi Sandro, Grapini Maria, Gražulis Petras, Gregorová Markéta, Grims Branko, Griset Catherine, Gronkiewicz-Waltz Hanna, Groothuis Bart, Grossmann Elisabeth, Grudler Christophe, Gualmini Elisabetta, Guarda Cristina, Guetta Bernard, Guzenina Maria, Győri Enikő, Gyürk András, Hadjipantela Michalis, Hahn Svenja, Haider Roman, Halicki Andrzej, Hansen Niels Flemming, Hassan Rima, Hauser Gerald, Häusling Martin, Hava Mircea-Gheorghe, Heide Hannes, Heinäluoma Eero, Henriksson Anna-Maja, Herbst Niclas, Herranz García Esther, Hetman Krzysztof, Hohlmeier Monika, Hojsík Martin, Holmgren Pär, Homs Ginel Alicia, Humberto Sérgio, Ijabs Ivars, Imart Céline, Incir Evin, Inselvini Paolo, Iovanovici Şoşoacă Diana, Jalloul Muro Hana, Jamet France, Jarubas Adam, Jerković Romana, Jongen Marc, Joński Dariusz, Joron Virginie, Jouvet Pierre, Joveva Irena, Juknevičienė Rasa, Junco García Nora, Jungbluth Alexander, Kalfon François, Kaliňák Erik, Kaljurand Marina, Kalniete Sandra, Kamiński Mariusz, Kanev Radan, Kanko Assita, Karlsbro Karin, Kartheiser Fernand, Karvašová Ľubica, Katainen Elsi, Kefalogiannis Emmanouil, Kelleher Billy, Keller Fabienne, Kelly Seán, Kemp Martine, Kennes Rudi, Khan Mary, Kircher Sophia, Knafo Sarah, Knotek Ondřej, Kobosko Michał, Kohut Łukasz, Kolář Ondřej, Kollár Kinga, Kols Rihards, Konečná Kateřina, Kopacz Ewa, Körner Moritz, Kountoura Elena, Kovařík Ondřej, Kovatchev Andrey, Krištopans Vilis, Kruis Sebastian, Krutílek Ondřej, Kubín Tomáš, Kuhnke Alice, Kulja András Tivadar, Kulmuni Katri, Kyllönen Merja, Kyuchyuk Ilhan, Lakos Eszter, Lalucq Aurore, Lange Bernd, Langensiepen Katrin, Laššáková Judita, László András, Latinopoulou Afroditi, Laurent Murielle, Laureti Camilla, Laykova Rada, Lazarov Ilia, Lazarus Luis-Vicențiu, Le Callennec Isabelle, Leggeri Fabrice, Lenaers Jeroen, Leonardelli Julien, Lewandowski Janusz, Lexmann Miriam, Liese Peter, Lins Norbert, Loiseau Nathalie, Løkkegaard Morten, Lopatka Reinhold, López Javi, López Aguilar Juan Fernando, López-Istúriz White Antonio, Lövin Isabella, Lucano Mimmo, Luena César, Łukacijewska Elżbieta Katarzyna, Lupo Giuseppe, McAllister David, Madison Jaak, Maestre Cristina, Magoni Lara, Maij Marit, Maląg Marlena, Manda Claudiu, Mandl Lukas, Maniatis Yannis, Mantovani Mario, Maran Pierfrancesco, Marczułajtis-Walczak Jagna, Mariani Thierry, Marino Ignazio Roberto, Marquardt Erik, Martins Catarina, Marzà Ibáñez Vicent, Mato Gabriel, Matthieu Sara, Mavrides Costas, Maydell Eva, Mayer Georg, Mazurek Milan, Mažylis Liudas, McNamara Michael, Mebarek Nora, Mehnert Alexandra, Meimarakis Vangelis, Mendes Ana Catarina, Mendia Idoia, Mertens Verena, Mesure Marina, Metsola Roberta, Metz Tilly, Mikser Sven, Milazzo Giuseppe, Millán Mon Francisco José, Minchev Nikola, Miranda Paz Ana, Molnár Csaba, Montero Irene, Montserrat Dolors, Morace Carolina, Morano Nadine, Moratti Letizia, Moreira de Sá Tiago, Moreno Sánchez Javier, Motreanu Dan-Ştefan, Mularczyk Arkadiusz, Müller Piotr, Mullooly Ciaran, Mureşan Siegfried, Muşoiu Ştefan, Nagyová Jana, Nardella Dario, Navarrete Rojas Fernando, Negrescu Victor, Nemec Matjaž, Nerudová Danuše, Nesci Denis, Neuhoff Hans, Neumann Hannah, Nevado del Campo Elena, Nica Dan, Niebler Angelika, Niedermayer Luděk, Niinistö Ville, Nikolaou-Alavanos Lefteris, Nikolic Aleksandar, Ní Mhurchú Cynthia, Noichl Maria, Nordqvist Rasmus, Novakov Andrey, Nykiel Mirosława, Obajtek Daniel, Ódor Ľudovít, Oetjen Jan-Christoph, Ohisalo Maria, Oliveira João, Omarjee Younous, Ó Ríordáin Aodhán, Orlando Leoluca, Ozdoba Jacek, Paet Urmas, Pajín Leire, Palmisano Valentina, Papadakis Kostas, Papandreou Nikos, Pappas Nikos, Pascual de la Parte Nicolás, Patriciello Aldo, Paulus Jutta, Pedro Ana Miguel, Pedulla’ Gaetano, Pellerin-Carlin Thomas, Peltier Guillaume, Penkova Tsvetelina, Pennelle Gilles, Pereira Lídia, Pérez Alvise, Peter-Hansen Kira Marie, Petrov Hristo, Picaro Michele, Picierno Pina, Picula Tonino, Piera Pascale, Pietikäinen Sirpa, Pimpie Pierre, Piperea Gheorghe, de la Pisa Carrión Margarita, Pokorná Jermanová Jaroslava, Polato Daniele, Polfjärd Jessica, Popescu Virgil-Daniel, Pozņaks Reinis, Prebilič Vladimir, Princi Giusi, Protas Jacek, Rackete Carola, Radev Emil, Radtke Dennis, Rafowicz Emma, Ratas Jüri, Razza Ruggero, Rechagneux Julie, Regner Evelyn, Repasi René, Repp Sabrina, Ressler Karlo, Reuten Thijs, Riba i Giner Diana, Ricci Matteo, Ridel Chloé, Riehl Nela, Ripa Manuela, Rodrigues André, Ros Sempere Marcos, Roth Neveďalová Katarína, Rougé André, Ruissen Bert-Jan, Ruotolo Sandro, Rzońca Bogdan, Saeidi Arash, Salini Massimiliano, Salis Ilaria, Salla Aura, Sánchez Amor Nacho, Sanchez Julien, Sancho Murillo Elena, Saramo Jussi, Sardone Silvia, Šarec Marjan, Sargiacomo Eric, Satouri Mounir, Saudargas Paulius, Sbai Majdouline, Sberna Antonella, Schaldemose Christel, Schaller-Baross Ernő, Schenk Oliver, Scheuring-Wielgus Joanna, Schieder Andreas, Schilling Lena, Schneider Christine, Schwab Andreas, Scuderi Benedetta, Seekatz Ralf, Sell Alexander, Serrano Sierra Rosa, Serra Sánchez Isabel, Sidl Günther, Sienkiewicz Bartłomiej, Sieper Lukas, Simon Sven, Singer Christine, Sinkevičius Virginijus, Sippel Birgit, Sjöstedt Jonas, Śmiszek Krzysztof, Smith Anthony, Smit Sander, Sokol Tomislav, Solier Diego, Solís Pérez Susana, Sommen Liesbet, Sonneborn Martin, Sorel Malika, Sousa Silva Hélder, Søvndal Villy, Squarta Marco, Staķis Mārtiņš, Stancanelli Raffaele, Ştefănuță Nicolae, Steger Petra, Stier Davor Ivo, Storm Kristoffer, Stöteler Sebastiaan, Stoyanov Stanislav, Strada Cecilia, Streit Joachim, Strik Tineke, Strolenberg Anna, Sturdza Şerban Dimitrie, Stürgkh Anna, Szczerba Michał, Szekeres Pál, Szydło Beata, Tamburrano Dario, Tânger Corrêa António, Tarczyński Dominik, Tarquinio Marco, Tarr Zoltán, Târziu Claudiu-Richard, Tavares Carla, Tegethoff Kai, Temido Marta, Teodorescu Georgiana, Teodorescu Måwe Alice, Terheş Cristian, Ter Laak Ingeborg, Terras Riho, Tertsch Hermann, Thionnet Pierre-Romain, Timgren Beatrice, Tinagli Irene, Tobback Bruno, Tobé Tomas, Tolassy Rody, Tomac Eugen, Tomašič Zala, Tomaszewski Waldemar, Tomc Romana, Tonin Matej, Toom Jana, Topo Raffaele, Torselli Francesco, Tosi Flavio, Toussaint Marie, Tovaglieri Isabella, Toveri Pekka, Tridico Pasquale, Trochu Laurence, Tsiodras Dimitris, Turek Filip, Tynkkynen Sebastian, Uhrík Milan, Ušakovs Nils, Vaidere Inese, Valchev Ivaylo, Vălean Adina, Valet Matthieu, Van Brempt Kathleen, Van Brug Anouk, van den Berg Brigitte, Vandendriessche Tom, Van Dijck Kris, Van Lanschot Reinier, Van Leeuwen Jessika, Vannacci Roberto, Van Overtveldt Johan, Van Sparrentak Kim, Varaut Alexandre, Vasconcelos Ana, Vasile-Voiculescu Vlad, Vautmans Hilde, Vedrenne Marie-Pierre, Ventola Francesco, Verougstraete Yvan, Veryga Aurelijus, Vešligaj Marko, Vicsek Annamária, Vieira Catarina, Vigenin Kristian, Vilimsky Harald, Vincze Loránt, Vind Marianne, Vistisen Anders, Vivaldini Mariateresa, Volgin Petar, von der Schulenburg Michael, Vondra Alexandr, Voss Axel, Vozemberg-Vrionidi Elissavet, Vrecionová Veronika, Vázquez Lázara Adrián, Waitz Thomas, Walsh Maria, Walsmann Marion, Warborn Jörgen, Warnke Jan-Peter, Wąsik Maciej, Wawrykiewicz Michał, Wcisło Marta, Wechsler Andrea, Weimers Charlie, Werbrouck Séverine, Wiesner Emma, Wiezik Michal, Wilmès Sophie, Winkler Iuliu, Winzig Angelika, Wiseler-Lima Isabel, Wiśniewska Jadwiga, Wölken Tiemo, Wolters Lara, Yar Lucia, Yon-Courtin Stéphanie, Yoncheva Elena, Zalewska Anna, Žalimas Dainius, Zan Alessandro, Zarzalejos Javier, Zdechovský Tomáš, Zdrojewski Bogdan Andrzej, Zijlstra Auke, Zīle Roberts, Zingaretti Nicola, Złotowski Kosma, Zoido Álvarez Juan Ignacio, Zovko Željana, Zver Milan

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Polytechnic University held the final stage of the Olympiad “I am a professional” in the direction of “Mechanical engineering”

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University held the final round of the All-Russian Student Olympiad “I am a Professional” in the Mechanical Engineering category. The competition in the bachelor’s degree category was held at the site of the Russian power engineering company JSC Power Machines. Participants in the final round solved interesting practical cases developed by experts from enterprises. The names of the winners of the VIII season of the All-Russian Student Olympiad “I am a Professional” will be announced in June. The Olympiad is being implemented within the framework of the federal project “Russia – Country of Opportunities” of the national project “Youth and Children” with the support of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Russia.

    The final round was attended by 19 people from 10 universities of the country: Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, TPU, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, NSTU, MAI, MEPhI, Ulyanov Chuvash State University, RUDN, MISiS and Empress Catherine II St. Petersburg Mining University. Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University has been supervising the Mechanical Engineering program for several seasons in a row. In total, the Olympiad covers 71 subject areas. To reach the final, students passed the qualifying round and then participated in the semi-finals.

    Before the competition, the companies’ employees gave the participants a tour, during which they introduced them to the main areas of their activities. Then the students received assignments for the final stage. The Olympiad participants solved practical cases compiled by the company’s engineers. Severstal representatives from the Repair Directorate and the Talent Development Department also acted as experts. PAO Severstal is a partner of the I Am a Professional student Olympiad.

    Participation in the Olympiad is a great opportunity to test your knowledge and skills, make new acquaintances, and decide on a career development direction. In the eighth season, we not only involved our partners in compiling practice-oriented tasks, but also “asked to visit” so that the participants of the competition could test themselves on a real production site, that is, feel like engineering special forces in action. St. Petersburg Polytechnic University traditionally organizes several areas in the Olympiad “I am a professional”. Let me remind you that the winners of the Olympiad receive additional points when entering a master’s and postgraduate program, – noted Vitaly Drobchik, Advisor to the Rector’s Office of SPbPU and organizer of the Olympiad at the Polytechnic University.

    The All-Russian Student Olympiad “I am a Professional” is a large-scale platform for testing the knowledge and applied skills of students from Russian universities, as well as a unique system of career support. The Olympiad has been held since 2017 and covers 71 subject areas: from aircraft engineering to artificial intelligence. This year, SPbPU is organizing competitions in the Mechanical Engineering and Hotel Business tracks. An innovation of this season was the provision of access to the Olympiad career portal to participants in the selection round. Every student interested in professional development will be able to try their hand at internships at more than 700 companies – industry leaders.

    Organizing such competitions for students is an important part of our comprehensive work on training highly qualified engineers. The special value of the cases of this Olympiad is that they are based on real production tasks, and thus students can get to know the profession they have chosen better, and we can help them better prepare for their future work and try to interest them, – said Konstantin Savichev, Director of the Engineering Center of Power Machines.

    The Olympiad provides a wide range of career support opportunities: project diploma holders can take advantage of benefits when entering the next level of education, get the opportunity to do an internship and start their professional career with leading Russian employers. Cash prizes of up to 300 thousand rubles are provided for medalists.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: AAIB Report: Cirrus SR22T, G-RGSK

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    News story

    AAIB Report: Cirrus SR22T, G-RGSK

    Fatal accident involving a Cirrus SR22T (G-RGSK), Duxford Airfield, Cambridgeshire, 26 March 2024

    Witness video frames at half second intervals just prior to impact

    At the end of a third circuit, which was intended to be a touch-and-go, G-RGSK bounced on touchdown. The pilot applied full power to go around but lost control of the aircraft, which turned left through approximately 90° before striking the ground. The aircraft’s ballistic parachute system deployed during the impact sequence.

    It was found that the aircraft had approached the stall as the nose attitude was increased for the go-around, triggering the stall warning. The tendency for the aircraft to yaw and roll left was not controlled, causing the aircraft to turn left, and the aircraft then stalled during the turn. The pilot sustained fatal injuries.

    To warn and protect people who may be unfamiliar with aircraft ballistic parachute systems, such as the emergency rescue services and others, from the potential danger, two Safety Recommendations are made concerning the provision of clear, conspicuous and unambiguous markings. The UK Civil Aviation Authority has published a Safety Notice on the same topic.

    Read the report.

    Updates to this page

    Published 3 April 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: AAIB Report: ATR 72-212 A, G-CMJM

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    News story

    AAIB Report: ATR 72-212 A, G-CMJM

    ATR 72-212 A (G-CMJM), right nosewheel detached on takeoff, on departure from Edinburgh Airport, 31 October 2023

    G-CMJM fractured nose landing gear axle

    Whilst taking off from Edinburgh Airport the right wheel from the nose leg gear detached from the aircraft. The detachment was not observed by the airfield operations department and the flight crew were unaware of the loss of the wheel. They continued the flight and landed at Belfast City Airport without any abnormal indications or adverse aircraft performance. The wheel was first noticed missing as the aircraft taxied onto stand at Belfast. A failure of the wheel axle caused by bearing overheat was identified as the cause of the wheel detachment. A number of potential contributing factors were identified, but the cause of the bearing overheat could not be positively determined.

    Read the report.

    Updates to this page

    Published 3 April 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Reps. Frankel, Kean, Jr. Urge FAA to Reimburse Businesses Affected by Presidential Flight Restrictions

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Lois Frankel (FL-21)

    Washington, DC – This week, Representatives Lois Frankel (D-FL-22) and Tom Kean, Jr. (R-NJ-07) urged Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Acting Administrator Chris Rocheleau to provide reimbursement to airports and businesses affected by Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs) during President Trump’s visits to his residences in Palm Beach, Florida, and Bedminster, New Jersey. Impacted facilities include Palm Beach County Park Airport (Lantana Airport) and airports in the Bedminster area.

    These recurring airspace restrictions significantly disrupt airport operations, resulting in major revenue losses for small, local businesses operating at these airports—such as flight schools, maintenance services, and propeller shops.

    “Protecting the President is a responsibility we all share, regardless of political affiliation,” said Rep. Frankel. “But it’s the federal government—not local businesses or airports—that should bear the cost of these necessary security measures.”

    “Protecting national security and supporting small businesses should not be mutually exclusive,” said Rep. Kean, Jr. “I am proud to represent a district with small, family-run airports that play a vital role in our community—and one that the President calls home part-time. While Temporary Flight Restrictions are critical for the President’s safety, they can also impose significant financial hardships on local airports and aviation businesses. That’s why Rep. Frankel and I are urging the FAA to use money that Congress has already provided to reimburse businesses for lost revenue and disrupted operations.”

    According to the Florida Aviation Economic Impact Study conducted by the Florida Department of Transportation, businesses at Lantana Airport employ more than 750 workers and contribute over $144 million annually to the local economy.

    For full text of the letter Reps. Frankel and Kean, Jr. sent, click here.

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    MIL OSI USA News –