Business Aviation

About half of Textron’s Wichita employees were scheduled to go on strike just after midnight today after rejecting the company’s latest contract offer on Sunday. About 5,000 members of the Machinists Union turned down Textron’s offer of a 26% wage increase over four years and a $3,000 annual lump sum bonus. The strike vote required […]

Avflight, the FBO arm of Ann Arbor, Michigan-based fuel supplier Avfuel, has announced it now offers sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) at its Falcon Field (KFFZ), Mesa, Arizona, location. The first truckload of SAF arrived at KFFZ on Aug. 28. The Falcon Field location is also the 30th Avflight FBO to offer SAF. Neste, based in […]

According to a CNBC report, the pandemic-driven bump in private aviation has begun to level off. Compared to a peak in 2022, private jet charter flights dropped 15% over the first half of this year. The report cites “waning demand and a new competitive landscape for high-end travel.” Notwithstanding a boost from the Summer Olympics […]

Gulfstream has flown its G400 test article for the first time, adding the low-end bookend for its range of big-cabin business jets. The program was announced in 2021 along with the ultra-long-range G800, which flew in 2022 but has not yet been certified thanks to delays caused by COVID and FAA changes in response to […]

Wheels Up has confirmed today that it has laid off a number of pilots effective immediately. Different sources have estimated the number as between 11% and as high as 20%. The company issued a statement to Private Jet Card Comparisons, an online news source that specializes in shared ownership aviation companies and their pricing programs. […]

About 1350 workers at Bombardier’s new business jet factory in Toronto are on strike and production of backlogged long-range Global series aircraft has halted. The company and Unifor, the union representing the workers, failed to reach an agreement by Sunday’s strike deadline and the workers hit the bricks. Negotiations are continuing and both sides seem […]

On Monday (June 17) the FAA announced two new actions addressing public charter flights, citing a rapid expansion of “frequency and complexity” of the operations in the past few years. The agency said that some of the charter providers “appear to operate like scheduled airlines but under less-rigorous safety regulations” that are often not clear […]

Multiple news outlets are reporting that former President Donald Trump has sold his 1997 Cessna Citation X. The buyer is a company associated with Mehrdad Moayedi, an Iranian-American real estate developer based in Dallas. Federal Election Committee records reveal that Moayedi has contributed close to $250,000 to Trump’s reelection campaigns in 2019 and 2020, as […]

It’s not well known, but the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) reports that 80% of its members are classed as “small operators,” meaning they operate a fleet of three aircraft of fewer. For a dedicated business aviation staff, that can mean that pilots, aviation managers and maintenance personnel can be put in the position of […]

Charter/fractional operator Wheels Up reported in an earnings call today (May 9) that the company is “positioned for long-term profitable growth,” despite continued net losses and adjusted EBITDA numbers (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization). As reported on the online news source Private Jet Card Comparisons, CEO George Mattson, who replaced company founder Kenny […]