Brazil civil aviation authority ANAC has certified the Daher Aircraft Kodiak 900 utility turboprop. Announced today, the approval allows Daher to offer both the stretched Kodiak 900 and the original Kodiak 100 in Brazil, where a growing fleet of Kodiak 100s already operates alongside the company’s high-performance TBM turboprop singles.

“With Brazil’s airworthiness certification, the Kodiak 900 now joins our Kodiak 100 to meet the country’s full scope of transportation needs,” said Daher Aircraft CEO Nicolas Chabbert. “These aircraft are perfectly suited for everything from serving the agriculture, farming, construction, and public safety sectors to corporate travel, regional airline modernization, and utility missions.”

A 3.9-foot fuselage stretch gives the Kodiak 900 some 20% more cabin volume, to 309 cu ft, than the Model 100. The turboprop single accommodates up to 10 occupants in a cabin featuring multi-directional Summit+ seats that can be configured in double club or forward-facing arrangements.

In 2022, the FAA certified the Kodiak 900, with EASA validation following in 2023. Both Kodiak variants are manufactured at Daher’s facility in Sandpoint, Idaho, where the company has invested in production enhancements since acquiring the product line in 2019. Earlier this year, Daher established a São Paulo operation to support its TBM and Kodiak fleets throughout Latin America.

Robinson Helicopter and Safran Helicopter Engines will include the engine manufacturer’s Serenity support package as a standard feature with every purchase of an R88 helicopter. Robinson unveiled the Arriel 2W-powered helicopter at Verticon in March.

Serenity covers five years or 2,000 flight hours, whichever comes first. Also included is AOG support, Level 3 and 4 unscheduled maintenance, priority access to the pool of replacement engines, troubleshooting and assistance solutions, health monitoring, and Safran’s Logbook Connect service.

The R88 will be Robinson’s largest helicopter, capable of carrying two pilots and eight passengers. Safran engineering personnel are working at the Robinson factory in Torrance, California, “to speed the collaboration and time to market,” according to Robinson Helicopter. “The two companies are working together closely to prepare for rigorous type certificate testing, designed to uphold the core values of reliability, dependability, and affordability.”

“Our objective is to deliver a highly capable, multi-mission, utility helicopter that will disrupt and outperform the single-engine market in capability and affordability. Integrating the Arriel 2W engine through a continuous and closely managed engineering process since March 2025 ensures we are meeting that objective,” said Robinson president and CEO David Smith. “The advancement of the Serenity package location support is a critical component of that value proposition, offering our customers predictable operational support, where they need it, when they need it.”

Private aviation real estate developer and operator Sky Harbour will be moving into the Dallas Metroplex in a big way with the signing of ground leases at three area airports for the creation of "Home Base Operator" campuses.

The company signed a lease with the city of Fort Worth for a 4.2-acre plot at Fort Worth Meacham International Airport (KFTW) with an option for an additional acre. It plans to break ground in late 2026 on a $17 million complex consisting of a pair of 32,000-sq-ft private hangars capable of sheltering ultra-long-range business jets. It will also install a dedicated fuel tank, with anticipated opening in late 2027.

Meanwhile, the Dallas city council approved Sky Harbour for leases at Dallas Love Field (KDAL) and Dallas Executive Airport (KRBD). At KDAL, where it has a 7.5-acre lease, it is planning to build two 37,000-sq-ft hangars (which each can be divided into two smaller hangars) and install its own fuel farm with an investment of $17.5 million. And it will double the number of 37,000-sq-ft hangars it expects to place on a 16-acre leasehold at KRBD. The $35 million facility there will also include its own fuel farm. These are expected to be completed in 2028.

These bring the company’s tally to 23 airports in the U.S., with nine locations in operation and 14 under development.

Helicopter group Bristow has confirmed it expects to operate the UK’s first eVTOL air-taxi service starting in first-quarter 2029. As an early customer for the just-unveiled Vertical Aerospace Valo eVTOL, Bristow is working with the manufacturer to develop a network of routes that would include a 12-minute connection from the Canary Wharf business district to Heathrow Airport.

The plans were announced before yesterday’s event to introduce Vertical’s redesigned six-passenger Valo, which will fly up to 87 nm at 130 knots. UK-based Vertical said it aims to produce 175 aircraft by the start of 2030, rising to an annual total of more than 225 by the fourth quarter of that year. Earlier this year, Bristow placed a pre-order for up to 50 of the Valo aircraft with options for another 50.

On the same day, French rotorcraft operator Héli Air Monaco signed a memorandum of understanding covering pre-orders for an undisclosed number of Valo aircraft. The new customer for Bristol-based Vertical said it will operate these in an air-taxi network along the Côte d’Azur, with stops in Monaco, Nice, Cannes, and Saint-Tropez.

Bristow will partner with Vertical and vertiport group Skyports Infrastructure to develop the new services. Other routes would operate to London Gatwick Airport and connect the university cities of Cambridge and Oxford.

Aviation software provider FL3XX said its business aviation management platform has processed more than $1 billion in operator revenue over the past 18 months as automated workflows reshape business aviation operations. Between June 2024 and last month, the company recorded activity from more than 158,400 flights carrying 393,800 passengers. Operators also coordinated more than 219,400 ground-handling services through the system, with accommodation, catering, transportation, and airport slot arrangements accounting for more than 24% of all services coordinated through the system.

FL3XX reports accelerating adoption in North America, describing the region as a major driver of digital transition. The company has doubled its U.S. team in the past year and onboarded 225 aircraft in the region since January.

“We’re seeing strong demand from U.S. operators modernizing their workflows,” CEO Paolo Sommariva said. He emphasized that integrated processes improve operational resilience and profitability as business aviation faces growing complexity, calling digitalization “the backbone of business aviation operations.”

Sommariva said automation is becoming essential for running complex operations efficiently. “We’ve received reports of aircraft availability rising by up to 25% and scheduling time reducing by 30% after digital adoption,” he noted. Sommariva added that real-time information flow allows teams to respond quickly and scale as demand increases, helping stabilize revenue performance during tighter margins.

The FL3XX aviation management platform supports business jets, helicopters, medical flights, mission-critical operations, and drones.