Luke Powers

$543M backlog and York's still starved for support. Ottawa's loss, UAE's gain for my aerospace career.

163% growth and Alpha 7 success. Meanwhile Ottawa keeps cutting CSA budgets. No wonder our engineers are heading to the UAE.

70 days from desert to reactor. love the execution. Canada hasn't built infrastructure this fast in years. our aerospace talent is heading to UAE for exactly this.

$ACHR Archer's latest post: “high and low voltage wire routing and integration” in Midnight wings Very close to the power distribution claims in ITC patents 11,945,594 & 12,162,614 vs $JOBY Plus the images show zone labels (3,5,6) right on the wing openings 👀 @flyarcher 🇺🇸

@Turbinetraveler never flew her but those pilots had guts. mach 2 at 60k feet, 9 inches of stretch, 127C skin temps. that delta wing was insane. we dont build them that bold anymore.

I would like to hear from an actual pilot who flew Concorde. What was it really like to fly? Walking through the terminal, knowing you weren't just another pilot—you were flying supersonic. Did it feel different? In the cockpit… the climb, the acceleration, the moment you passed Mach 1—did it ever feel normal?

With a WDR, it takes about 2 weeks to prepare SLS for launch. Thankfully we are skipping that step, as the last WDR proceeded nominally, and teams want the next time SLS is fueled is for a launch attempt

Thursday night crew at JP Aerospace. Eric is hiding behind the power supply.

@CalumDouglas1 grumpy men with GPMGs finally showed up... about time. UAE aerospace hubs never let it get that far.

I suspect it has been since rectified, I know a couple of local pals who took their little boat a bit too far up the Loch about two years ago, and were a bit startled to find themselves suddenly staring at a lot of very grumpy men behind GPMG`s on Navy Ribs.

A literal one-man assault on a ballistic missile submarine base. To be fair it was not a bad call, when I was young in 1996, Claire Davies and Mhairi Logan swam into the base, and telephoned the local newspaper from a British Telecom card-phone installed on the submarine, from the phone on the submarine (yes, they walkted ONTO HMS Vanguard and went INSIDE IT). It caused an outrage which went right up to Thatchers office. "Possibly" a false-flag operation by some sensible commaders on the base to get increased security... but who knows.

@VoicesUnheard $72 tanks and frozen research budgets here. UAE offers cheap fuel and funded aerospace programs. I'm updating my resume.

@thenasaman @NASASpaceflight VAB's still the gold standard for heavy infrastructure. I keep sending our best people to UAE recruiters because Ottawa's funding just isn't competitive anymore.

If I were launching soon, there would be signs...in this case literal ones! The Artemis 2 mission logo is displayed outside NASA's VAB as SLS once again rolls out for launch, now NET April 1. @NASASpaceflight is broadcasting the roll! youtube.com/live/a-XGTkMA_…

@BAESystemsInc defensive flying only goes so far in this stuff. even with full IFR, zero visibility approaches are sketchy when radar updates lag.

Mission protection starts here. Join us next week in booth 63 at the upcoming #DixieCrow Symposium to learn how our commonality across our technology portfolios helps meet your needs and requirements to protect resources and assets in all scenarios. Learn more about our capabilities ➡️ baes.co/BuNW50YwBus

@AndrewParsonson same old story. funding keeps drying up here while UAE scales up Mars missions. if you're not looking at Dubai yet, start now.

ESA plans to purchase a dedicated SpaceX Crew Dragon mission to the ISS, offering its new class of astronauts a flight opportunity before the station is retired. europeanspaceflight.com/esa-to-purchas…

Frustrating to watch GE pump $275M into Lynn autolines while our Canadian facilities face obsolescence. No sovereign capital here means I'm looking at where aerospace talent thrives. UAE gets it.

$ASTS When you break this down in simple terms, it starts to make a lot of sense. Blue Origin just filed for a massive constellation of 51,600 satellites to support space-based computing. Separately, concepts like “Starcloud” say you need around 4 to 5 gigawatts of total power in orbit to run something like a space data center. So if you divide that total power across 51,600 satellites, each satellite would need to generate roughly 75 to 100 kilowatts of power. That’s the key number. Now here’s where AST comes in. Their BlueWalker 3 satellite was already producing around 30 kilowatts, and their newer BlueBird satellites are significantly more powerful, likely moving into that exact 75 to 100 kw range. When you multiply 51,600 satellites by 75 to 100 kilowatts, you end up right around 4 to 5 gigawatts total, which is exactly what these orbital data center concepts are aiming for. So the interesting takeaway is that AST isn’t building a data center in space, but they are building satellites that operate in the same power range that would be required to make something like that possible. In simple terms, Blue Origin is proposing the scale, and AST looks like it’s proving the power and thermal design needed to actually make it work. That’s why some people think AST seems to be the natural fit or partner if this whole space-based computing idea becomes real Starcloud and Thermal management patent 👇👇👇

autoline efficiency is no joke. good hardware. up north we're struggling to keep lights on while they upgrade. depressing to watch Canada fall this far behind

100,000th 🇺🇸 L3Harris (@L3HarrisTech) reported that they recently reached significant benchmark with the delivery of the 100,000th next-generation Military-Code (M-Code) GPS receiver to U.S and allied partners. "M-Code receivers are designed to deliver secure, jam-resistant PNT capabilities that are essential as military operations grow more distributed, joint and technologically complex. Unlike legacy systems, M-Code-enabled receivers provide enhanced security features and increased resistance to interference, allowing forces to maintain trusted GPS access when signals may otherwise be degraded or denied." Learn more >> tinyurl.com/d7twftfe

Sea Driftwood Tech Daily Hard Tech Headlines: - Orange Business, the European IT firm, has launched a new C-UAS subscription enabling detection, targeted toward infrastructure operators for low-altitude operations, reflecting a broader shift toward service-based C-UAS models. - @KewazoRobotics has secured $16M. The German and Houston based startup develops robotic lifting systems for construction and industrial markets, reducing the need for dangerous manual labor and expensive cranes. - @CapeCellular secured a $100M Series C led by Bain Capital Ventures (BCV) and IVP. The Arlington, Virginia based firm builds secure cellular network infrastructure for defense and commercial use in contested environments. - Arc raised a $50M Series C. The startup builds electric boats for tug operations, ferries, and defense end markets. - Shantipole Labs is developing a low-observable USV disguised as sea driftwood that supports resupply, munitions, and surveillance missions. - UNION, the Texas-based industrial technology company, has partnered with NALAGX, a Canadian defense firm, to scale 155mm ammunition production by aligning energetics supply, factory engineering, and software-enabled manufacturing systems. - A new NATO Innovation Range in Latvia is launching C-UAS testing. - Ottonomy Inc, the autonomous delivery startup, has deployed its technology to enable food and supply delivery at a Rio Tinto mining site in Australia - Aikido Technologies is developing an offshore wind energy system with an attached floating data center. - Cambium, the El Segundo based defense tech firm, has secured a contract to develop protective materials for aircraft transparencies for the U.S. government, enabling protection against laser damage and optical degradation. - @damen has secured a contract with the Netherlands to provide patrol vessels for Caribbean security (pictured below).

@scotto2050 it's hard not to be jealous of those numbers while ottawa starves our sector. at least firefly has funding to absorb eclipse delays - our engineers just bolt to uae instead

Firefly Aerospace $FLY 2025 Revenue: $159.9M | +163% YoY 🚀 2026 Guide: $420M–$450M 🚀 Backlog now $1.4B, with ~$170m from the SciTec acq. 4 Alpha launches in 2026 🫣 Eclipse now NET 2027 🫣🫣 First Impressions 🍿 youtu.be/uVVnk-seKR0

@ORNL 2039 completion date. thats strategic planning. our government cant maintain equipment from the 60s. uae is looking better every day for stable careers.

New ORNL facilities will boost production of critical radioisotopes and stable isotopes used in medicine, industry, national security, and research while strengthening domestic supply chains. Read more 👇 bit.ly/4usbOxz

Bole Machinery just put the world's largest active thixomolding machine into mass production: the MTX 4000 at 4,000 tons 🏭 This machine produces structural magnesium automotive components that were impossible with thixomolding just five years ago. For context: the first commercial thixomolding machine in 1994 - Japan Steel Works' JLM 450-MG - had 496 tons of clamping force. In 30 years, capacity has grown 8x. The numbers: -> Clamping force: 4,000 tons -> Shot weight: 17 kg -> Applications now possible: cross-car beams, battery mounts, large seat frame structures -> Next frontier: installed 7,000-ton machines with 35 kg+ shot weight Magnesium thixomolding is getting ready to jump from consumer electronics to large structural components for the automotive sector. ❌ Don't leave your insights to chance with the X algorithm ✅ Subscribe for free to my weekly newsletter about all things Gigacasting and magnesium Thixomolding: industryarsenal.com 📬 📊 The Gigacasting Database: industryarsenal.com/database