Rolls Royce

A major player in aerospace innovation has bitten the dust. Reaction Engines, a developer of hypersonic engine technology since 1989, has gone into administration and its closure is having an impact on the hypersonic weapons program of Britain and others.

To commemorate the 60th anniversary of the release of the Bond thriller Goldfinger, Rolls-Royce has built a one-off Phantom Extended that is a modern take on the 1937 Phantom III Sedanca de Ville that the eponymous villain built out of smuggled gold.

This fire-breathing 27-liter 1,800-horsepower Rolls-Royce Merlin aero engine famously powered the Spitfire, Hurricane, Mustang, Lancaster and Mosquito WW2 aircraft. It's been mounted on a trailer and really is a sight to behold and feel.

Rolls-Royce has received an additional £4.8 million (US$6.2 million) in funding from the UK Space Agency (UKSA) to develop key technology for a nuclear micro-reactor that could one day power lunar bases and spacecraft propulsion.

Aiming to make armored vehicles stealthier, Rolls-Royce is using this year's Eurosatory defense trade fair to debut a new concept hybrid diesel engine that not only makes tanks and such more efficient, but easier to hide.

Rolls-Royce gave us a glimpse of the nuclear future of next-generation spacecraft and Moon bases when it unveiled a mock-up of its Space Micro-Reactor Concept Model at the UK Space Conference in Belfast, which ran between November 21 to 31, 2023.

Rolls-Royce has taken a major green step, announcing that not only has its giant UltraFan demo jet engine been run at full power on 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), but tests have proven all its current civilian engines are compatible with 100% SAF.

Under a UK Space Agency contract, Bangor University in Wales is developing a new poppy-seed-sized nuclear fuel for the Rolls-Royce micro reactors that will power future crewed lunar outposts by 2030.

Rolls-Royce has completed the first ground tests on its massive UltraFan engine, claiming it's at least 10% more efficient than any other large aero engine in service today. This carbon/titanium beauty will roll out on airliners in the 2030s.

The UK Space Agency has awarded Rolls-Royce a £2.9-million (US$3.5-million) contract to develop a demonstrator modular nuclear reactor that could be installed on the Moon by 2029 to support permanent human outposts on the lunar surface.

At NASA's Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, Rolls-Royce has begun testing of the F130 jet dual-engine pods that will power the US Air Force's B-52H Stratofortress heavy bomber fleet for the remainder of its service life into the 2050s.

Rolls-Royce says it's finished building the first demonstrator for its massive UltraFan engine, which will eventually hit the skies in airliners to be developed in the 2030s. Testing begins soon, with expectations of a 25% leap in efficiency.