Blackhawk’s facility in Columbia, Missouri, expanded eligibility for the modification company’s XP67A engine upgrade for King Air 350/360s equipped with Collins Pro Line Fusion avionics. This move comes after it finished validation testing with Collins Aerospace for the Phase 4++/version 3.7 software.

The Pro Line Fusion software upgrade includes controller-pilot datalink communications, integrated TAWS with improved alerts, touchscreen controls, synthetic vision system with 3-D terrain renderings, and privacy ICAO address feature.

The XP67A upgrade installs new Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-67A engines that deliver increased shaft horsepower at higher altitudes compared to baseline King Air 350 engines. Typical cruise speeds reach up to 332 ktas, according to Blackhawk.

Edwin Black, president of Blackhawk’s proprietary upgrades division, said the combination of the XP67A engines with Collins’ Pro Line Fusion avionics “is a home run.” He added that the certification “brings significant value” to owners and operators of more than 300 recently delivered King Air 350is and 360s.

Blackhawk’s Columbia facility is an authorized Collins Aerospace dealer certified to perform Pro Line Fusion software upgrades on Fusion-equipped King Airs.

Security experts have warned that a new wave of attacks by Iran-backed Houthi forces poses significantly increased risks to aviation in airspace spanning Saudi Arabia and Egypt. Additionally, if the Yemen-based fighters close the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait that connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, this could further curtail the flow of jet fuel and other oil and gas products already disrupted by the almost-complete closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

According to Dyami Security Intelligence, the increased risk to flights from Houthi military action is focused on the airspace immediately adjacent to Yemen, where these forces are based. The company sees potential for the conflict area to widen and warned on Tuesday that Houthi involvement in the conflict represents what it described as “the most dangerous course of action.” It is advising clients to expect a sustained war of attrition with multiple flight information regions at risk from missiles and drones.

“At this point, it is not really the case that airspace is either open or closed; it’s a patchwork in which contingency procedures are continuing,” Hany Bakr, senior v-p for aviation and maritime security with MedAire, said during a briefing yesterday.

This morning, Osprey Flight Solutions chief intelligence officer Matthew Borie warned of potential dangers from Houthi forces increasing the potential for its Iranian allies to threaten more military air bases.

Hamilton AI has teamed up with the nationally chartered bank Column to expand its AI-based workflow and execution platform for private aviation. Under the agreement, Hamilton AI will embed Column’s programmable banking infrastructure into its platform, enabling a Banking Plus feature with financial tools designed for air charter and fleet operations.

These tools include a marketplace function that will provide instant settlement between the customer and operator and eliminate the float or reconciliation delays frequently found with legacy air charter payment systems. In addition, the Hamilton AI platform will have a dispatch feature, providing end-to-end services for the operator workflow, from lead to landing.

This partnership with Column comes shortly after Hamilton AI raised $7.5 million in seed money through fundraising led by TTV Capital. That money will help Hamilton AI accelerate the development of the platform.

The San Francisco-based software company was formed in 2024 to create a platform to help private aviation operators automate and accelerate operations through AI. Hamilton said the partnership, coupled with the seed money, “reflects the growing urgency to modernize a $60 billion private aviation market that has long been held back by fragmented, legacy technology.”

Landing gear MRO provider Av8 is investing in its Embraer Phenom 300 program with the purchase of additional sets of landing gear and more high-value rotable parts and components.

The move adds to Av8’s Phenom landing gear rotable exchange pool and enables the Houston-based company to exchange entire landing gear assemblies so operators don’t have to wait for a lengthy overhaul. This also helps operators plan ahead and have schedule certainty when it’s time to perform a landing gear exchange.

“Phenom aircraft continue to represent a large and growing portion of the light jet fleet,” said Av8 general manager Kevin Connelly. “This investment reinforces our commitment to supporting operators with faster, more reliable landing gear maintenance solutions while ensuring we maintain the inventory and infrastructure necessary to meet increasing demand.”

Av8 Group is an FAA and EASA Part 145 repair station and specializes in Hawker and Phenom 100/300 landing gear, including fixed-price overhauls, and manufacturing of FAA-approved PMA parts. Victor Sierra acquired Av8 Group in 2025.

Yesterday, Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson signed HB 2711, the repeal of the 10% luxury tax on general and business aviation aircraft that had been approved last April and set to take effect today. The tax would have applied to new and preowned aircraft purchases valued at more than $500,000 and also would have imposed use taxes on operators of aircraft so valued.

As the repealed bill SB 5801 was intended to provide funding for transportation programs, the replacement bill includes an increase in aviation fuel taxes, to 25 cents from 18 cents per gallon, and a higher aircraft registration fee, which will climb automatically by 2% per year.

According to the Pacific Northwest Business Aviation Association (PNBAA), “When SB 5801 was passed last year, establishing a 10% tax on the original value of aircraft owned, leased, or purchased in the state, aircraft began moving out of Washington. Service providers began losing customers. Ultimately, general aviation in Washington shrunk significantly over the past year.”

To counter the deleterious effects of SB 5801, PNBAA hired a lobbyist, met with legislators, petitioned the senator who sponsored SB 5801 (and joined his working group to help fix the problems in the original bill), and mobilized aviation interests in Washington to help find a better solution.

Metro Aviation expects to receive an FAA supplemental type certificate in June for an air medical interior in the Airbus Helicopters H160. According to the Shreveport, Louisiana-based company, the H160 platform allows air medical providers to serve broader geographic areas and transport critically ill patients, including cases requiring specialized care, across greater distances.

Memorial Hermann’s H160 on display at the recent Verticon show is being used as the conforming aircraft for the STC program. Metro Aviation is completing a second H160 for another customer with a similar configuration.

The interior includes onboard systems such as liquid oxygen and medical inverters built into the aircraft. Metro Aviation is considering a more flexible configuration that would allow the use of portable medical equipment to accommodate international operators who do not use integrated onboard systems.

“Metro Aviation recognizes that while integrated onboard systems are standard in many U.S. programs, numerous international operators rely on ‘carry-on’ medical equipment to support their clinical missions,” the company said. After receiving STC approval, Metro Aviation plans to create an installation kit allowing other certified completion centers and operators to add the Metro-designed interior to H160s.

Kansas-based Avcon Industries received FAA supplemental type certificate (STC) approval for a single sensor port installation on Cessna Caravans. The STC expands Avcon’s Cessna Caravan capabilities beyond existing certifications for dual camera ports, lower fuselage radar pod, and retractable sensor lift system on the platform. Avcon plans to also add the single port option to Grand Caravans.

“We’ve seen strong demand from operators for both the single and dual port or hole provisions on the Cessna 208,” said Avcon president Marcus Abendroth. “These aircraft are used worldwide for special missions—from mapping and search-and-rescue to reconnaissance—and the addition [by] Avcon of the single camera port enhances operational flexibility and mission capability.”

Avcon Industries, a subsidiary of Butler National Corp., offers engineering, structural modifications, and systems integration services for commercial and business aircraft. The company focuses on modifications supporting business aviation, atmospheric research, intelligence/surveillance/reconnaissance operations, forestry, and air ambulance services.