Bombardier’s Challenger 600-series jets remain strong sellers today but the roots of these programs, as well as of its flagship Globals, trace back decades to the company Canadian Vickers, which produced large numbers of PBV-1 Canso (license-built Catalina) amphibious aircraft for the Allied war effort in World War II.

In 1944, it was taken over by the Canadian government, although it was sold in 1946 to what later became General Dynamics. A vast production facility was constructed at Cartierville in Quebec, which during the Cold War built CL-13/F-86 Sabres, CL-90/F-104 Starfighters, and CL-219/F-5 Freedom Fighters to assist with the rearming of NATO air arms.

Chad Anderson, the Minneapolis-based president and CEO of the global advisory Jetcraft, oversees the company’s sales, inventory, and corporate strategy. BJT asked him about the rollercoaster of demand in the last five years, the thriving preowned business jet market, and the health of the industry in the U.S., South America, Europe, and Asia.

With more inventory of preowned aircraft now available, he said trying to buy an airplane is no longer "a knife fight in a phone booth."

A Florida jury has found Cessna liable for the 1989 crash of a C-185 in Florida and returned a record $480 million verdict against the Wichita-based manufacturer. Nobody died in the accident, but the three occupants of the 1966-model taildragger were injured in the crash and ensuing fire.

The lawsuit, filed by Philadelphia lawyer Arthur Wolk, contended that pilot James Cassoutt’s seat suddenly slid backward while he was attempting to land at Coastal Airport, a strip near Pensacola, Florida, causing him to lose control of the airplane. Unfortunately for Cessna, the protections of the 1994 General Aviation Revitalization Act (GARA) did not apply in this case because both the accident (in 1989) and the initiation of litigation (in 1991) preceded passage of the bill.

The FAA plans to fill every seat at the air traffic controller training academy in Oklahoma City and expand capacity in one of several agency initiatives to ramp up controller hiring and training. This effort comes as controller staffing constraints have come under the spotlight in the wake of a spate of high-profile close calls in the last year. But building up this workforce takes time and can be complex.

The controller academy at the Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center (MMAC) in Oklahoma City provides basic training for new hires. During the pandemic, it allowed new hires to complete the first course at home and then report to Oklahoma. However, the academy was closed for four months, and training at facilities was paused for eight or more months during the pandemic as the FAA focused on keeping ATC facilities open while dealing with Covid.

When you’re talking about wealthy pockets of the country, there are few better indicators than residential real estate prices. Almost everyone—from homeowners to prospective homebuyers—is acutely aware of low inventory and sky-high asking prices. 

Zillow has put the matter in stark terms with an easy-to-remember number: The tech real-estate marketplace company took a hard look at places where the typical home is valued at $1 million or more, and while the locations are not especially surprising (the coastal states, the biggest states, and the richest states by GDP all came up roses), the extent of the imbalance is striking.

AOPA will tell a visual story of general aviation today with a unique flyover at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. To involve 15 various “chapters” of general aviation and 60 aircraft dating back to 1939 during the “Golden Age” of the industry, the flyover will kick off from Frederick Municipal Airport (KFDK), in Maryland, led by AOPA president Mark Baker in his Beechcraft Staggerwing 17.

“It’s going to be a special time for AOPA and for general aviation,” Baker said. “What a sight it will be to see the history of general aviation flying over the National Mall as GA has given this nation so much over the past many decades.”

Leasing group Monte is to offer financing options for operators of Regent’s wing-in-ground-effect electric-powered sea gliders under an agreement announced by the companies this week. Monte has committed to adding both the 12-passenger Viceroy and the planned 100-passenger Monarch to its portfolio, without specifying how many of each type it will buy in a reportedly $300 million deal.

In March, UK-based Monte launched a new maritime division to build on its offering in the regional aviation sector by specializing in electric sea vessels. Regent is the first manufacturer to agree on terms with the new business unit in a partnership arrangement sealed during this week’s CoMotion Miami event.

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