Author: FlyMarshall Newsroom

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — New Zealand’s Defence Force and intelligence agencies are on track to receive almost $4.3 billion (US$2.5 billion) in this year’s budget, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced on May 28.The NZDF is among the handful of government agencies exempt from trimming their budgets by 2% this year.Their funding includes $2.3 billion capital and $1.2 billion operating funding to retain NZDF personnel — currently more than 15,000 people — increase numbers in key areas and improve accommodation and training facilities at military bases across the country. Intelligence and communication security services receive $156 million.The operating funding includes $120…

October 2025 saw the unveiling of Magnifica Air, a new premium airline project for the United States.  The proposed new carrier, expected to launch no sooner than Q3 2027, aims to ride the growing popularity of luxury leisure travel in the US.  As yet, not much is known about Magnifica other than the type of aircraft it plans to operate, namely ACJ220-300 and ACJ321neos, the executive version of these popular airliner models. The aircraft are to be fitted with custom-designed high-end interiors by vertically integrated executive aviation group Comlux.  A case in point, in Q4 2025, Delta Air Lines reported,…

Lufthansa is to bring its Allegris cabin to 11 new destinations this winter, expanding the reach of the premium product it introduced in 2024. The Allegris interior, which features updated seating, higher-end materials, and new technology across all classes, will now be available on routes from Frankfurt Airport (FRA) to Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KUL); Vancouver International Airport (YVR); George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) in Houston; Denver International Airport (DEN); Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL); Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW); Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO) in San José; and Incheon International Airport (ICN) in Seoul.From Munich Airport (MUC), the…

NEW DELHI — India, the United States, Australia and Japan have announced new initiatives on maritime security in the Indo-Pacific and unveiled plans for their first joint port infrastructure project in Fiji.The foreign ministers of the four countries made the announcement at a meeting of the Quad, a strategic security grouping focused on the Indo-Pacific at a meeting in New Delhi this week. The move to boost cooperation comes amid concerns about China’s growing influence in this region.U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the maritime surveillance agreement is “going to leverage each of our country’s maritime surveillance capabilities…

A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket exploded during a hot-fire test at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on May 28, 2026, producing a large fireball during a ground test of the launch vehicle’s engines. Blue Origin confirmed an “anomaly” during the test, stressing that all personnel were safe and accounted for. A hot-fire test involves firing a rocket’s engines while the vehicle remains secured to the launch pad. The test took place at Launch Complex 36, the Florida pad used by Blue Origin for New Glenn missions. Video posted online showed a large explosion and fireball at the pad. The…

Taiwanese full-service carrier Starlux Airlines announced plans to add four new long-haul destinations to its network during 2027.  In a public statement during the airlines’ annual shareholder meeting on May 29, 2026, Starlux Airlines Chair, Chang Kuo-wei, revealed that the airline is planning to launch new routes from its base in Taipei-Taoyuan (TPE) to Barcelona (BCN), Zürich (ZRH), Sydney (SYD) and Auckland (AKL), the latter being operated as an extension of the Sydney service.  However, these plans are still under evaluation and no firm decision has yet been taken.   If confirmed, these would be the first and only nonstop routes…

CHAUMONT, France — The French Army’s first international drone competition felt a little like a tribute to the drone-racing scene that started it all, said a British pilot who competed in the event on a former United States airbase in eastern France last week.Apart from their combat fatigues, the drone pilots with first-person view goggles and joystick controllers could have been hobbyist racers, maneuvering quadcopter drones through bright yellow gates and an abandoned building. But simulated strike missions added a distinctly military edge to the two-day competition, with bonus points for hitting targets including a moving Ford pickup truck.“Even with…

A Russian kamikaze drone, likely a Shahed-type model, entered Romanian airspace during the night of May 28 to 29, 2026, striking a high-rise residential building in the city of Galați, starting a fire and injuring two people.  The drone was reportedly taking part in a Russian attack on the territory of neighboring Ukraine, which lies not far from Galați across the Danube river.  According to a statement published by the Romanian Ministry of Defense, the Russian drone was detected and tracked by radar. Two Romanian Air Force F-16 were scrambled from the 86th Air Force Base in Fetești at 1.19am.  …

By Bjorn Fehrm May 29, 2026, ©. Leeham News: We do a series on aircraft structures and how these have shaped how our airliners can transport us around the world today. We started the history of aircraft structures last week by observing that the development of structures is very much tied to the development of materials, with the crossover from wood to metal enabled by the discovery of copper-alloyed aluminum, which was originally patented as Duralumin. We will now look at the stressed skin construction this enabled and the development of a second class of alloyed aluminum, the Zinc alloyed…

Turboprops are one of the most popular types of aircraft engines. Unlike turbofans, they don’t rely on exhaust gases to produce thrust. Instead, turboprops burn a mixture of fuel and air to turn a propeller blade. Propeller blades, however, have different parts, including the blade root. What Is the Blade Root? The blade root is the part of the propeller blade that connects to the hub. It’s essentially the innermost end of the blade. When installed, the blade root sits close to the engine within the propeller hub. Common features of blade roots include the following: Thick, heavy-duty construction Precision-machined…