AFWERX In the News

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Joby Aviation, Inc. officially delivered its first experimental electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft to the Air Force during a ceremony held at Edwards Air Force Base, California, Sept. 25. The ceremony showcased the unique multi-party collaboration between private industry, AFWERX, the 412th Test Wing and NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center.

DUKE FIELD, Florida (AFRL) – AFWERX and one of its Prime division partners, BETA Technologies, an electric aerospace company, broke ground on the first electric aircraft charging station on a military installation at Duke Field, Florida, Sept. 19, 2023.

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. (AFRL) – AFWERX showcased the innovation from Spark Cells around the world at the Air, Space and Cyber Conference, in National Harbor, Maryland, Sept. 11-13. The aisle of four booth spaces at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center was called "Spark Street" where hundreds of attendees learned about ideas and projects from Airmen and Guardians that have improved and strengthened the Department of the Air Force.

WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFRL) – AFWERX Prime and the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center Architecture and Integration Weather office have signed a memorandum of agreement allowing them to collaborate on efforts to reduce the impact of low-altitude weather on Advanced Air Mobility platforms.

NASA AMES RESEARCH CENTER, Calif. – After a series of capability site visits, AFWERX and NASA have strengthened their partnership to better reach advanced air mobility goals.

AUSTIN, Texas (AFRL) – More than 20 industry partners attended the first in-person AFWERX Collider event in over three years at Fed Supernova in Austin, Texas. Colliders went virtual during the COVID-19 pandemic but the return of face-to-face interaction gave Air Force leaders the opportunity to share the same room with small businesses and entrepreneurs to spark interaction and unleash American ingenuity to solve warfighter problems.

Col. Elliott Leigh, AFWERX director and chief commercialization officer for the Department of the Air Force, kicks off Fed Supernova with 22 minutes of wellness at Capital Factory in Austin, Texas, Aug. 23, 2023. Leigh encourages everyone to take 22 minutes each day to focus on something that brings joy in their life. AFWERX invited Maribel Gabriel Valls, a meditation teacher, to lead a morning mindfulness session to create a lasting habit of self-care and improve long-term well-being. (U.S. Air Force photo by Matthew Clouse)

WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFRL) – AFWERX Spark held five Crossflow events at strategically situated locations throughout the world in 2023, all focused on the development, collaboration and growth of Spark Cells in each region.

AFWERX has launched IGNITE, a platform where defense users can search for and easily interact with thousands of small businesses that have secured previous Department of the Air Force Small Business Innovation Research or Small Business Technology Transfer awards.