A fuel leak fire ended the space launch of the Air Force Academy’s FalconSat-2 satellite. Launch of the SpaceX aerospace firm’s Falcon1 rocket ended seconds into its flight from Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific last Friday. The launch—first for SpaceX founder Elon Musk—originally was slated for November, then December, then earlier this year. Musk told the BBC that he hoped to have another rocket ready to launch in less than six months.
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach told lawmakers Apr. 30 that the service’s biggest airlifter, the C-5 Galaxy, has a 37 percent mission capable rate—one of several challenges facing the mobility fleet.