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Reuters
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Taiwan test fires for first time new US-supplied HIMARS rocket system
JIUPENG, Taiwan, May 12 (Reuters) - Taiwan on Monday test-fired for the first time a new U.S.-supplied rocket system that has been widely used by Ukraine against Russia and could be deployed to hit targets in China if there is a war with Taiwan. The United States is Taiwan's most important arms supplier, despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties. Taiwan has faced increased military pressure from China, including several rounds of war games, as Beijing seeks to assert its sovereignty claims over the island. Taiwan has bought 29 of Lockheed Martin's (LMT.N), opens new tab precision weapon High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, or HIMARS, with the first batch of 11 received last year and the rest set to arrive by next year. With a range of about 300 km (186 miles), they could hit coastal targets in China's southern province of Fujian, on the other side of the Taiwan Strait, in the event of conflict. The U.S.-trained Taiwan military team fired the rockets from the Jiupeng test centre on a remote part of the Pacific coast. Officer Ho Hsiang-yih told reporters U.S. personnel from the manufacturer were at the site to tackle any problems. "I believe that this rocket firing shows our people the military's determination to protect the country's security and safeguard our beautiful homeland," he added. HIMARS, one of Ukraine's main strike systems, has been used multiple times during the war with Russia. In March, Australia said it had received the first two of 42 HIMARS launcher vehicles. The test came a day after Taiwan said it had detected another "joint combat readiness patrol" by China's military near the island, involving warplanes and warships. Taiwan's democratically-elected government rejects China's sovereignty claims, saying only the island's people can decide their future.
India Today
30-04-2025
- Science
- India Today
Video: Firefly's Alpha rocket fails, Lockheed's satellite crashes into ocean
Firefly Aerospace's Alpha rocket suffered a technical issue on Tuesday as it ascended into space on its sixth flight, causing a Lockheed Martin (LMT.N), opens new tab satellite it was supposed to place into orbit to crash into the Pacific two minutes following liftoff from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, the engine nozzle on Alpha's upper portion broke off in space moments after it attempted to separate from the rocket's core booster as designed, "substantially reducing the engine's thrust," Firefly typical rocket mishaps trigger explosions or on-board shutdown commands, Alpha's upper rocket body fired for several minutes and ascended to 320 km (200 miles) in altitude. But it failed to reach its intended orbit and was pulled back into the atmosphere by Earth's after compensating for the wiggle. Still pushing uphill. Not too sure if it's camera angle or there's a nozzle issue. NSF - (@NASASpaceflight) April 29, 2025 "The stage and payload have now safely impacted the Pacific Ocean in a cleared zone north of Antarctica," Firefly Alpha's ascent, a company livestream of the flight showed several pieces of debris flying off the rocket. On-screen altitude and speed data disappeared moments before, earlier than Tuesday's events, four of six Alpha flights since 2021 have failed. Firefly, which was able to achieve a breakthrough moon landing in March, is vying with a handful of similar upstarts seeking to build a launch business in a market dominated by Elon Musk's Alpha mission was the first under an agreement between Firefly and Lockheed for up to 25 flights through 2029. The satellite was self-funded by Lockheed and called LM 400 Technology Demonstrator, an effort to test technologies that Lockheed plans to sell to other customers, such as the Pentagon."Navigating risk and going fast are part of these self-funded demonstrations," a Lockheed spokesman said, adding that the satellite's production yielded insights that will benefit future 1-2 NSF - (@NASASpaceflight) April 29, 2025About an hour after the launch, Firefly posted on X that a mishap put "the vehicle in a lower than planned orbit," then deleted that statement. The company said it was working with Lockheed, the U.S. Space Force and Federal Aviation Administration to determine the root cause of the Alpha, Firefly hopes to fulfill demand from the U.S. Defense Department for launching national security payloads into space, particularly under tight timelines. The company had a successful launch in 2023 in a Space Force mission to demonstrate rapid-launch in 2014, Austin-based Firefly went bankrupt in 2017, changed ownership amid U.S. national security concerns in 2022, ousted its CEO over an inappropriate relationship in 2024 then landed on the moon on its first try in March.
Reuters
26-03-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Senior Taiwan defence official to visit US for fighter jet ceremony
TAIPEI, March 26 (Reuters) - One of Taiwan's deputy defence ministers will visit the United States for a ceremony this week marking the completion of a new F-16 fighter jet for the island, the first acknowledged such trip since U.S. President Donald Trump took office. The United States in 2019 approved an $8 billion sale of Lockheed Martin (LMT.N), opens new tab F-16V fighter jets to Taiwan, a deal that would take the island's F-16 fleet to more than 200 jets, the largest in Asia, to strengthen its defences in the face of a stepped up threat from China, which views Taiwan as its own. Taiwan has been converting 141 F-16A/B jets into the F-16V type and has ordered 66 new F-16Vs, which have advanced avionics, weapons and radar systems to better face down the Chinese air force, including its stealthy J-20 fighters. But Taiwan has complained of delays for the new F-16Vs, saying problems include software issues. Speaking to reporters in Taipei on Wednesday, Taiwan air force planning department director Chiang Yuan-chi said the first of the new F-16Vs would leave the factory in the U.S. state of South Carolina this week. A deputy Taiwan defence minister would lead a delegation to attend the ceremony, he added, without naming the minister or giving other details. Taiwan has two deputy defence ministers. "The first F-16V has been assembled," Chiang said, adding the order is expected to be completed by next year. Taiwan's F-16 pilots are trained at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona. The Pentagon did not respond to a request for comment outside of office hours. Unlike visits to the United States by senior officials from allies like Japan and Britain, conducted openly, those of Taiwanese officials, especially military, are kept low key and often not officially confirmed. Last year, Taiwan's navy chief visited the United States. China has repeatedly called for the United States to end any military contacts with Taiwan, whose government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims. China's Taiwan Affairs Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The United States is bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself, but the two have no formal diplomatic relations, with Washington recognising only Beijing's government and not Taipei's democratically elected one.
Reuters
17-03-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Bombardier CEO fears US could target firm if Canada scraps jet deal
MONTREAL, March 17 (Reuters) - Bombardier CEO Eric Martel said on Monday he was concerned Washington could target the company's U.S. contracts if Canada cancels a C$19-billion contract for 88 Lockheed Martin (LMT.N), opens new tab F-35 fighter jets. Canada, locked in a trade war with the United States, is reviewing the contract for the jets. "Effectively, we could be targeted, this is my concern," Martel told reporters in Montreal after a speech. Last October, Bombardier's defense arm announced the delivery of an eighth jet to the United States Air Force as part of a deal with a potential value of $465 million. The aircraft carry specialized communications platforms. Martel said if the U.S. did impose tariffs that affect the company's deliveries, one option for Bombardier would be to focus on deliveries first to non-U.S. clients, given it has a long order backlog. He said he does not see U.S. tariffs on planes as likely or lasting a long time if applied. Canada's Defense Ministry, acting on a request from new Prime Minister Mark Carney, said it has made a legal commitment of funds for the first 16 F-35 aircraft but cited "the changing environment" as the reason for the review. "I am there to defend Bombardier, but I understand why the new prime minister is asking these questions," Martel said.
Reuters
04-03-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Musk's SpaceX to invest $1.8 billion in Florida for Starship program expansion
WASHINGTON, March 4 (Reuters) - SpaceX is planning to invest at least $1.8 billion to build new Starship launchpads and processing facilities on Florida's Space Coast, eyeing a key expansion for the rocket program beyond Texas amid pending environmental reviews, according to the state's governor. Elon Musk's SpaceX has been looking to build new Starship launchpads near its primary launch sites in Florida, as it works in Texas on early development and testing of the next-generation rocket designed to loft bigger loads of satellites into space and put humans on the moon later this decade. Ahead of SpaceX's eighth attempt to launch Starship from Texas on Monday, the company announced it is building a 380-foot tall, 815,000 square foot "Gigabay" facility where it will assemble future Starship rockets before shipping them to the launchpad. The company is eyeing two Florida launchpads for Starship - one close to its primary launch site at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Launch Complex 39A, and another potential site nearby at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Launch Complex 37. The 39A Starship site is already under construction. "The project includes at least $1.8 billion of SpaceX capital investment and will bring an estimated 600 new full-time jobs in the Space Coast by 2030," Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' office said in a statement on Monday. SpaceX has not yet secured regulatory approvals to launch Starship from Florida. The U.S. Air Force is leading a review into how Starship launches in the state would impact the local environment. A draft report of SpaceX's plans and its environmental impact is expected to be published in the spring, followed by a regulatory decision later this year on whether to green-light those plans. Some tenants of the area's other launch pads, such as the Boeing-Lockheed (BA.N), opens new tab, (LMT.N), opens new tab joint venture United Launch Alliance and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin, have called for more scrutiny into Starship's Florida plans over concerns an explosion of the rocket could cause widespread damage. U.S. officials for years have been trying to study the blast effects of a rocket so large that uses methane and liquid oxygen propellants. Multiple Starship prototypes have exploded on or above SpaceX's sprawling, privately run facilities in Boca Chica, Texas, prompting pushback by environmental groups that have had little success restricting the company's speedy rocket development. SpaceX has considered Starship explosions and mishaps crucial learning opportunities as part of a novel, capital-intensive test-to-failure development ethos that has underpinned its speed over rivals in the space industry.
