Automotive and Aerospace

Please review each article prior to use: grade-level applicability and curricular alignment might not be obvious from the headline alone.

MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS TetraGen Robotics co-founders (from left) Bhavin Dharia, lead software developer, COO Michael Newman and CEO Matt Khoshdarregi showcase their industrial robot arm.
No Subscription Required

Manitoba-made technology earns faith of investors across Canada

Gabrielle Piché 5 minute read Preview
No Subscription Required

Manitoba-made technology earns faith of investors across Canada

Gabrielle Piché 5 minute read Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026

Blue light flashed as a robotic arm welded the metal in front of it.

Unlike other robots of its kind, this one uses artificial intelligence. It’s supposed to see and adjust its movements if a part it’s working on doesn’t match the standard piece.

It’s Manitoba-made technology that investors across Canada are betting on. TetraGen Robotics, the technology’s creator, announced it had raised $1.8 million in an oversubscribed seed funding round.

It announced the funding Monday afternoon. Jim Richardson, from the family behind Richardson International, is among the investors listed online.

Read
Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026
A Porter plane taxis down the runway at the Ottawa International Airport in Ottawa on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
No Subscription Required

Child who prompted Porter Airline flight cancellation not at fault, passenger says

Elissa Mendes, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview
No Subscription Required

Child who prompted Porter Airline flight cancellation not at fault, passenger says

Elissa Mendes, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Tuesday, Sep. 1, 2026

The child whose refusal to buckle up prompted the cancellation of a Porter Airlines flight last week was "obviously terrified" and should not be blamed, says a passenger who was on the plane bound for Toronto.

The aircraft could not take off from Victoria in what Porter called an unsafe situation, so the crew decided to return to the terminal and have the child and a parent get off the plane. By the time they deboarded, it was too late for the flight to proceed.

Passenger Aryeh Kozuch said he has taken the red-eye flight a dozen times without issue, but as he was closing his eyes in preparation for takeoff last Thursday, he noticed flight attendants walking toward the back of the plane. Then, he heard an overhead announcement reminding passengers that obeying flight attendants' instructions is required by law.

Five minutes later, there was another announcement: Passengers needed to comply with flight attendants' instructions within 60 seconds, or the plane was going back to the gate.

Read
Tuesday, Sep. 1, 2026
First responders at Highway 110 and Richmond Avenue East in Brandon after the crash that killed Xiaoyun Zhang. (Alex Lambert/The Brandon Sun files)

Trucking operation linked to fatality in Brandon shut down by Alberta government

Malak Abas 5 minute read Preview

Trucking operation linked to fatality in Brandon shut down by Alberta government

Malak Abas 5 minute read Friday, Aug. 7, 2026

The Alberta government has shut down Conquer Transport Inc., the trucking company linked to a crash near Brandon in which a 49-year-old woman, who had the right of way, was killed.

Devin Dreeshen, Alberta’s transport minister, said the province launched an investigation into Conquer Transport after one of its semi-trucks ran a stop sign on May 27, 2026 at Highway 110 at Richmond Avenue East.

The semi hit an SUV driven by Xiaoyun Zhang, a Chinese immigrant who worked at the nearby pork processing plant. She died at the scene and the truck driver, 35-year-old Brijpal Panwar, has been charged with dangerous driving causing death.

“Our investigative team went out and … saw numerous non-compliance issues, whether it was hours of service with their drivers not being recorded properly, vehicle maintenance and inspections being insufficient, their safety program also being insufficient.”

Read
Friday, Aug. 7, 2026
A Royal Canadian Air Force CC-130H Hercules is on the tarmac of Saskatoon John G. Diefenbaker Airport in Sask., Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Heywood Yu

Old military transport aircraft to get new lease on life as waterbombers

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

Old military transport aircraft to get new lease on life as waterbombers

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Monday, Aug. 10, 2026

OTTAWA - The federal government said Friday it is selling 10 of its used CC-130H Hercules aircraft to B.C.-based aerospace company Coulson Aviation, which will convert them into firefighting aircraft.

They're part of a fleet of 12 retired by the Royal Canadian Air Force back in January. The remaining two Hercs will be put on public display at bases and museums.

Secretary of State for Defence Procurement Stephen Fuhr announced the conditional sale of the recently retired aircraft in Abbotsford, B.C., where an international air show is being held.

Fuhr called the sale a "gold standard" divestment project that will give the military assets a new lease on life.

Read
Monday, Aug. 10, 2026
This image was captured at 6:41 p.m. EDT, on April 6, 2026, just three minutes before the Orion spacecraft and its crew went behind the Moon and lost contact with Earth for 40 minutes before emerging on the other side. (NASA)
No Subscription Required

Scientists are certain a wayward SpaceX rocket slammed into the moon as predicted

Marcia Dunn, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview
No Subscription Required

Scientists are certain a wayward SpaceX rocket slammed into the moon as predicted

Marcia Dunn, The Associated Press 5 minute read Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A SpaceX rocket that launched a pair of lunar landers slammed into the moon as predicted on Wednesday after drifting off course for the past year, scientists reported.

Although no one observed the actual 5,400-mph (8,700-kph) collision, a telescope in Chile spotted what astronomers have identified as the debris plume resulting from the crash. Space tracking experts said it was inevitable that the leftover rocket segment plowed into the moon.

It’s the latest instance of lunar litter, a problem that many fear could worsen as the U.S. and China race to put astronauts on the moon. In 2022, a Chinese rocket unintentionally hit the moon following a lunar mission, and many more stray rocket pieces likely struck the moon in decades past without scientists' knowledge.

SpaceX's Julianna Scheiman said this week that the company is working with NASA to avoid future wrecks, stressing that this projected crash was not deliberate. A combination of solar activity and gravity accidentally put it on a collision course with the moon, she said.

Read
Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026
Telesat CEO Dan Goldberg speaks at a press conference in Ottawa on Wednesday, July 24, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
No Subscription Required

Ottawa awards Telesat $2.3B Arctic military satellite contract

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview
No Subscription Required

Ottawa awards Telesat $2.3B Arctic military satellite contract

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026

OTTAWA - A Canadian telecommunications firm has signed a deal with the federal government worth $2.3 billion to provide high-speed satellite communications to the Canadian Armed Forces in the Arctic.

The federal Defence Investment Agency and Telesat LEO announced the deal on Monday. The contract is meant to secure broadband coverage in remote northern locations for a range of Canadian military activities, including Norad.

This is the largest contract ever for the Ottawa-based Telesat, which has been in operation for about 60 years. It's expected to give the company's network growth plans a major boost.

Telesat CEO Dan Goldberg said the contract will allow his firm to increase the size of its planned low-Earth orbit satellite network by about 44 per cent by adding another 69 satellites.

Read
Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026
The NASA Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket with the Orion spacecraft prepares to launch at the Kennedy Space Center, Wednesday, April 1, 2026, in Cape Canaveral, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
No Subscription Required

Canadian astronaut prepares for NASA mission to International Space Station

Erika Morris, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview
No Subscription Required

Canadian astronaut prepares for NASA mission to International Space Station

Erika Morris, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026

Growing up on a cattle farm in eastern Alberta, Joshua Kutryk says he dreamt of going to space though he never thought it would happen.

But a few months after Artemis II's lunar flyby, the 44-year-old is preparing for a mission to the International Space Station that could lead to medical breakthroughs.

Kutryk is one of four members assigned to NASA's SpaceX Crew 13 mission.

He will join NASA's Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, as well as Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov. Watkins will be returning to the space station for the second time.

Read
Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026
FILE - A display shows $110.04 for gasoline on a fuel pump at a Mobil gas station on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)

Major oil companies reap massive profits as US and Iran fighting drives energy prices higher

Cathy Bussewitz, The Associated Press 7 minute read Preview

Major oil companies reap massive profits as US and Iran fighting drives energy prices higher

Cathy Bussewitz, The Associated Press 7 minute read Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026

NEW YORK (AP) — American oil and gas giants raked in massive spring profits while fighting between Iran and the U.S. impeded petroleum shipments and consumers around the world paid more for fuel and confronted shortages.

The conflict, now in its sixth month, halted most shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that previously served as a delivery route for a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas. With global supplies constrained, prices for Brent crude, the international standard, soared from about $70 to above $100 a barrel for much of March, April and May, and at one point reached $126.

The money that oil companies accrued between the beginning of April and the end of June could receive extra scrutiny this year. Gasoline, diesel and jet fuel prices climbed sharply during that period, increasing costs for drivers and airline passengers. Supplies ran low in some countries, leading to sporadic fuel rationing in Australia and government office closures in Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Exxon Mobil on Friday reported that its second quarter profits doubled to $14.53 billion, boosted by record diesel production. The oil giant, based in Spring, Texas, brought in $116.02 billion in revenue, up 42%.

Read
Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026
FILE - People view a Zoox self-driving vehicle at the company's booth during the CES tech show, Jan. 7, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)

Some robotaxis approved to operate without steering wheels and losing the brake pedal could be next

Josh Funk And Ty O'neil, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Some robotaxis approved to operate without steering wheels and losing the brake pedal could be next

Josh Funk And Ty O'neil, The Associated Press 5 minute read Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Federal regulators are clearing the way for robotaxis to operate without manual controls like steering wheels or eventually even brake pedals as the rules start to catch up to the evolving technology.

Amazon’s fully autonomous Zoox vehicles got approval Thursday to begin charging customers for rides in the specially designed cars that feature four inward-facing seats once they secure state and local approval. Zoox has already been offering free rides in Las Vegas and San Francisco since last year. At least a couple people were waiting at most stops Thursday afternoon for rides up and down the Vegas strip aboard one of the distinctive boxy-shaped vehicles.

“It’s kind of scary at first, but when I just got used to it, it’s really cool and chilling. I really liked the music and how you can adjust the temperature,” Chloe Huu from Ann Arbor, Michigan, said after taking a ride in a Zoox Thursday. But the projected wait time for the ride kept changing, which made it hard to plan.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also proposed a rule last month to allow robotaxis to operate without brake pedals, but that proposal is still pending. Administrator Jonathan Morrison said his agency wants to update the regulations to fit these fully autonomous vehicles while still acting as the “cop on the beat to make sure that this is being done right.”

Read
Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026
A transport truck carries a cargo container at the Port of Vancouver, on Friday, July 14, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
No Subscription Required

‘Drive day and night’: TFI plans to roll out driverless trucks in U.S.

Christopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview
No Subscription Required

‘Drive day and night’: TFI plans to roll out driverless trucks in U.S.

Christopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026

MONTREAL - Canada's biggest trucking company aims to roll out autonomous big-rigs in the United States next year, with testing slated to start within months.

TFI International Inc. is working on the project with a partner south of the border in a bid to boost reliability, safety and fuel efficiency, said chief financial officer David Saperstein.

"It can drive day and night. There's no hours of service," he told analysts on a conference call Tuesday evening.

Driverless vehicles steer clear of human factors such as fatigue, illness and poor driving, Saperstein suggested.

Read
Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026
Lt.-Gen. Jamie Speiser-Blanchet speaks with media at the Museum of Aviation in Ottawa on Thursday, July 10, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
No Subscription Required

‘Bright’ future: RCAF chief says spike in defence spending is boosting flight times

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Preview
No Subscription Required

‘Bright’ future: RCAF chief says spike in defence spending is boosting flight times

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Monday, Aug. 17, 2026

OTTAWA - One year into her new job as commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force, Lt.-Gen. Jamie Speiser-Blanchet said she could see an immediate effect of the federal government's defence spending boost: RCAF pilots are spending more time in the air.

In a recent interview with The Canadian Press, Speiser-Blanchet also acknowledged that preparing the entire service for what she described as a rapid and "giant transformation" — rebuilding the whole plane while it's flying, so to speak — sometimes gives her pause.

"It's that pace of change sometimes that worries me a little," she said.

She said while she’s "very comfortable" with the decisions made preparing for modernization, it's "the thought that there's something we should be doing now to make sure that we're set up for success in the future and that we're missing it" that keeps her up at night.

Read
Monday, Aug. 17, 2026
Laura Rance-Unger This tractor and grain cart have no driver. The unit is operated remotely and is called to the combine when it is time to unload the hopper.
No Subscription Required

Automation reaches new heights on farm

Laura Rance-Unger 4 minute read Preview
No Subscription Required

Automation reaches new heights on farm

Laura Rance-Unger 4 minute read Saturday, Jul. 25, 2026

LANGHAM, Sask. — The thousands of farmers from across the Prairies who flock to the annual Ag in Motion show every July seem oblivious to the possibility the technology on display could one day replace many of them.

Families with children in tow, Hutterite colony workers, grandparents and young couples just starting out roamed through the 600 or more exhibitor displays, amazed at how everything about farming just keeps getting bigger, more efficient and increasingly more automated.

It’s now possible to seed using a 100-foot-wide drill — a 12-foot jump over the widest available a few years ago — provided the farmer can afford a tractor with enough horsepower to pull it. Those sell for around $850,000 and up.

Granted, the number of farms with enough acres to justify that kind of width and drawing power is still relatively small, but farms continue to grow. And it’s no secret the number of people who have the interest, skills and financial wherewithal to run them continues to shrink.

Read
Saturday, Jul. 25, 2026
This undated photo provided by the Discovery Channel Tuesday, July 21, 2026, shows, from left, Air/Sea Heritage Foundation (ASHF) President Russ Matthews, ASHF Director Idee Matthews-Montijo, Expedition Unknown's Josh Gates and Deep Sea Visoin President of Operations Craig Wallace inside an AUV hangar with an Explorers Club flag. (Discovery Channel via AP)

Wreckage found of Pan Am plane crash that helped lead to today’s safety briefings on every flight

Josh Funk, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Wreckage found of Pan Am plane crash that helped lead to today’s safety briefings on every flight

Josh Funk, The Associated Press 5 minute read Wednesday, Jul. 22, 2026

Searchers have found the wreckage from a Pan Am flight that plunged into the ocean off Puerto Rico in 1952, an accident that killed 52 and led to requirements for the passenger safety briefings given on every commercial flight.

The plane, the Clipper Endeavor, made a hard landing after losing engine power shortly after takeoff. The 17 passengers and crew who survived told investigators everyone lived through the landing, but panic set in as many passengers struggled to find life vests and the crew had a hard time pulling out life rafts.

Within minutes, the plane sank. Explorers found the wreckage of the DC-4 last month by using an autonomous sonar drone to locate the fuselage and tail in 2,000 feet of water.

Now before takeoff, flight attendants instruct passengers about exit locations and where life vests are located and how to inflate them.

Read
Wednesday, Jul. 22, 2026
No Subscription Required

Manitoba’s inspiration economy

Peter George 5 minute read Monday, Jul. 20, 2026

Every conversation about Manitoba’s future seems to arrive at the same place.

We talk about investment, innovation, productivity and skilled labour. We celebrate the strength of our aerospace sector, the opportunities created by the world-class companies, community development corporations and educational institutions that have made Manitoba one of Canada’s aerospace leaders.

These are important conversations, but I have come to believe we are overlooking one of the earliest — and perhaps most important — investments we can make in our future economy.

Where does inspiration begin?

SpaceX's mega rocket Starship stands ready but was aborted before liftoff, in Starbase, Texas, Thursday, July 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
No Subscription Required

SpaceX Starship launch aborted on the pad at the last moment

Marcia Dunn, The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview
No Subscription Required

SpaceX Starship launch aborted on the pad at the last moment

Marcia Dunn, The Associated Press 3 minute read Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026

SpaceX’s mega Starship rocket came within a second or so from blasting off on a test flight Thursday, but some of the engines failed to ignite, triggering a launch abort amid billowing clouds of smoke and vapor.

Elon Musk, the company's founder and CEO, said two engines will be replaced “to be confident of a good flight” before sending Starship from Texas on a space-skimming journey halfway around the world. It will be the 13th flight for Starship, which at 407 feet (124 meters) tall with 33 main engines is the world’s biggest and most powerful rocket.

SpaceX's launch webcast showed the start of engine ignition three seconds before the planned liftoff, viewed from a drone high above the pad. Although the company did not elaborate, onscreen data showed four engines not firing, with the remaining 29 engines immediately shutting down and keeping the rocket anchored to the pad. It was the first time a full-scale Starship experienced a last-second abort like this.

The launch team immediately began draining the fuel from the rocket.

Read
Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026
Russell Wangersky / Free Press The airplanes soar — the experience, when you’re in economy seats, does not.
No Subscription Required

What a way to fly — if you’re rich

Pam Frampton 5 minute read Preview
No Subscription Required

What a way to fly — if you’re rich

Pam Frampton 5 minute read Wednesday, Jul. 15, 2026

When my husband and I were catching a flight from Roatán, Honduras, to Toronto earlier this year, we shared a taxi to the airport with an acquaintance.

He was an amiable guy and we made small talk. I noticed he got jostled travelling over the bumpy island roads same as we did, even though he was one of those annoyingly well-put-together travellers who seemed unfazed by the crushing humidity that was making my hair stick to my neck and forehead. Perhaps he was wearing one of those breathable fabrics that wicks away moisture.

And though I had heard he had travelled to many parts of the world, I noticed his luggage wasn’t quite as “seasoned” as ours.

We shook hands at departures, and the light rhythmic whir of his pristine wheelie bag quickly faded as he melted into the throng at Juan Manuel Gálvez International Airport while we were still gathering our bags.

Read
Wednesday, Jul. 15, 2026
People ride in an electric tricycle equipped with a solar panel in Havana, Cuba, Friday, July 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

Solar-powered tricycles help Cubans navigate fuel shortages and blackouts

Andrea Rodríguez, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Solar-powered tricycles help Cubans navigate fuel shortages and blackouts

Andrea Rodríguez, The Associated Press 4 minute read Saturday, Jul. 11, 2026

HAVANA (AP) — Cuba’s iconic vintage cars have all but disappeared and in their place, small electric tricycles — most of them made in China — have become the primary means of transportation for hundreds of thousands of Cubans grappling with a prolonged fuel crisis.

These are no ordinary electric tricycles — many Cubans have outfitted them with solar panels, allowing the vehicles to recharge without relying on the island nation's strained power grid.

The three-wheelers are a far cry from the old-timers that only a year ago cruised the streets spewing clouds of black smoke.

“This is how people get around now,” said 40-year-old Liecer de la Cruz, who owns one of these vehicles.

Read
Saturday, Jul. 11, 2026
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, a drone photo shows the successful capture of the returned first stage of Long March-10B carrier rocket on a seaborne platform via a net-capture system near Wenchang in southern China's Hainan province on Friday, July 10, 2026. (Xing Guangli/Xinhua News Agency via AP)

China takes a page from SpaceX and recaptures the first stage of a rocket to reuse it

The Associated Press 2 minute read Preview

China takes a page from SpaceX and recaptures the first stage of a rocket to reuse it

The Associated Press 2 minute read Saturday, Jul. 11, 2026

BEIJING (AP) — China successfully recaptured the first stage of a rocket after a launch on Friday in a breakthrough for the country's space program, state media said.

The first stage of a Long March-10B rocket separated from the second stage after liftoff and returned to a platform in the sea, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

It was the first time China recovered the first stage of a rocket. America's SpaceX has been doing so for several years to drive down launch costs by reusing the booster that helps lift the satellites or whatever the rocket is carrying into space.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin have been recovering their rockets since 2015, saving vast amounts of money by recycling them rather than ditching them after liftoff. SpaceX leads the pack with more than 600 landings of its first-stage Falcon boosters, steering them to ocean barges as well as landing zones near the launch pads. Just this week, SpaceX launched a booster for the 36th time, a new record.

Read
Saturday, Jul. 11, 2026
Ruth Bonneville / Free Press local - Dr. Dent Winnipeg Photo of Trevor Sprechert, general manager of Dr. Dent on St. James in Winnipeg, who has been inundated with more hail claims than he has ever seen before. RECORD MPI CLAIMS: MPI has confirmed June was a record month for vehicle damage claims related to the wild weather. Tyler Searle July 8th, 2026
No Subscription Required

Auto body shops swamped following record-setting weather-related claims

Tyler Searle 6 minute read Preview
No Subscription Required

Auto body shops swamped following record-setting weather-related claims

Tyler Searle 6 minute read Wednesday, Jul. 8, 2026

Manitoba’s auto body industry has kicked into high gear after rain and hail battered parts of the province in early June, smashing windshields, submerging vehicles and shattering the 30-year-old record for the most auto insurance claims tied to a single weather event, new data shows.

Manitoba Public Insurance logged more than 30,000 insurance claims connected to the massive storm system that settled over Winnipeg and surrounding areas on June 9 — exceeding the record set during a 1996 hailstorm that generated 24,000 claims, data provided to the Free Press shows.

“Truthfully, it has never been this busy,” said Trevor Sprechert, general manager of Dr. Dent Winnipeg.

“I’ve seen windshields being broken, sunroofs, pretty substantial dents on hoods and roofs. There is a plethora of different types of damage.”

Read
Wednesday, Jul. 8, 2026
FILE - A John Deer emblem is seen at the Husker Harvest Days farm show in Wood River, Neb., Sept. 12, 2018. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik, File)

John Deere owners will get the right to repair their own equipment under a new FTC settlement

Sarah Raza, The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

John Deere owners will get the right to repair their own equipment under a new FTC settlement

Sarah Raza, The Associated Press 3 minute read Wednesday, Jul. 22, 2026

It looks like John Deere owners can soon feel free to fix their own machines.

The Federal Trade Commission and attorneys general from several states secured a right-to-repair settlement Wednesday with agriculture equipment giant Deere & Co. — commonly known as John Deere — that requires the company to let farmers and independent shops fix their own equipment.

The Illinois-based manufacturer has faced complaints for years for withholding the software needed for repairs and forcing customers to use authorized dealers instead of independent ones.

This marks the second right-to-repair settlement Deere has reached this year, following a separate $99 million class-action settlement with farmers in April. Though the class-action compensated consumers, the FTC's settlement instead requires Deere to make its repair services available to equipment owners and independent shops.

Read
Wednesday, Jul. 22, 2026
A suborbital launch from Maritime Launch Services' Spaceport Nova Scotia, near Canso, N.S., is seen on June 10, 2026, in this handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout — Maritime Launch Services Inc. (Mandatory Credit)

German aerospace company signs 10-year deal to use Nova Scotia rocket launch pad

Devin Stevens, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

German aerospace company signs 10-year deal to use Nova Scotia rocket launch pad

Devin Stevens, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Wednesday, Jul. 8, 2026

HALIFAX - The company vying to build Canada’s first commercial rocket launch pad in Nova Scotia has signed a deal with a German aerospace firm that could see orbital launches by 2028.

Halifax-based Maritime Launch Services Ltd. says Germany’s Isar Aerospace plans to build a dedicated complex for its Spectrum rocket at the Nova Scotia company's site near Canso, N.S., on the eastern shore.

The two-stage rocket is designed to carry small- and medium-sized satellites into space. The German company, which has already established its first launch site in Norway, has created a new Canadian subsidiary, Isar Aerospace Canada Inc.

"While every nation needs data from space, almost no nation has the end-to-end capability to access it independently,” Alexandre Dalloneau, Isar’s vice-president of mission and launch operations, said in a statement.

Read
Wednesday, Jul. 8, 2026
A bartender pours a glass of sparkling wine at the United Club lounge, Monday, June 29, 2026, in Minneapolis, Minn. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

US airlines are redesigning travel around their highest-paying passengers

Rio Yamat, The Associated Press 7 minute read Preview

US airlines are redesigning travel around their highest-paying passengers

Rio Yamat, The Associated Press 7 minute read Friday, Jul. 10, 2026

They may arrive at the same destination, but two passengers on the same flight can have strikingly different travel experiences.

One traveler breezes through a priority security lane and heads straight to an invite-only lounge for craft cocktails and a chef-prepared meal before boarding early. A flight attendant offering a glass of champagne and a warm hand towel welcomes the passenger to a spacious seat at the front of the plane.

The other traveler stands in a line at every step — security screening, a café selling $16 sandwiches, a crowded gate — then boards with one of the final groups, hoping there’s still room for a carry-on in the overhead bin before folding into a cramped middle seat. After the cabin lights dim, sleep comes in fragments, and a travel pillow does little to ease a stiff neck.

The contrasting journeys are no accident. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the largest U.S. airlines have pulled out all the stops to court premium passengers who are willing to pay for comfort, convenience and exclusivity. Budget-conscious travelers may notice a widening gap between the back of the plane and up front as the carriers increasingly build their businesses around selling first-class, business-class and premium-economy seats.

Read
Friday, Jul. 10, 2026
FILE - The air traffic control tower rises above terminals at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, April 20, 2010. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

A passenger jet reported hitting a drone approaching NY. A helicopter had a near miss hours later

Josh Funk, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

A passenger jet reported hitting a drone approaching NY. A helicopter had a near miss hours later

Josh Funk, The Associated Press 4 minute read Tuesday, Jun. 30, 2026

A passenger jet reported striking a drone while approaching JFK International Airport on Monday, and just hours later, a helicopter pilot alerted a close call with a remote-control airplane near the same airport.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the first incident that happened as a JetBlue plane passed through 3,000 feet (914 meters) Monday morning whit it was crossing the coastline. The plane landed safely in New York without any additional help, and no damage was found when the plane was inspected afterwards.

“We collided with a drone back there in the turn,” the pilot told an air traffic controller, according to ATC.com. “It hit us right above the cockpit.”

The airline said all the passengers deplaned normally, and then the plane was removed from service so it could be inspected. JetBlue said the airline “found no damage or evidence of a collision.” The Airbus A321 plane was flying overnight into New York from Las Vegas.

Read
Tuesday, Jun. 30, 2026
FILE - People look up to the sky from an observatory near the village of Avren, Bulgaria, Aug. 12, 2009. (AP Photo/Petar Petrov, File)

A large, harmless asteroid will zip past Earth this weekend

Adithi Ramakrishnan, The Associated Press 2 minute read Preview

A large, harmless asteroid will zip past Earth this weekend

Adithi Ramakrishnan, The Associated Press 2 minute read Saturday, Jun. 27, 2026

NEW YORK (AP) — A large asteroid will zip past Earth this weekend, but don't worry: It poses no danger.

The space rock — 1997 NC1 — makes its closest approach Saturday morning, coming within 1.6 million miles (2.6 million kilometers), according to the European Space Agency.

Discovered nearly three decades ago by an asteroid-tracking system in Hawaii, the asteroid is between 2,461 feet (0.75 kilometer) to 5,413 feet (1.65 kilometers) wide — roughly the size of two to four Empire State Buildings.

Skygazers with binoculars and small telescopes may be able to spot the asteroid as a small point of light passing harmlessly through the sky. It won't greet Earth from such a distance again until 2133, according to NASA.

Read
Saturday, Jun. 27, 2026