Airbus Helicopters has reported brisk market growth in 2025, citing a “strong performance…across the entire civil and military range.” The company logged 544 gross orders from 205 customers in 50 countries last year, with Airbus noting that market momentum for its uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) is also building. This builds on 455 gross orders from 182 customers in 2024, which Airbus described as “stable growth in a complex global environment.”

Major sovereign commitments signed during 2025 included a “landmark” order from Spain for 100 helicopters. This incorporated 50 H135Ms and 31 NH90s for all three branches of the armed forces, reinforcing Airbus Helicopters CEO Bruno Even’s belief that the company’s “focus on defense and security has never been sharper.”

An overall demand Airbus described as “unprecedented” was consistent across aircraft categories. The NH90 medium twin saw “renewed momentum,” explained Airbus, adding that the light-twin segment was “equally robust.” The company garnered 149 orders for the H145, maintaining the model’s “position as the best seller on the civil and parapublic and military markets.”

Augmenting conventional platforms, Airbus added that its integration of tactical drones such as the SurveyCopter UAS into its core offerings is helping provide “a seamless, networked ecosystem for the modern battlespace.” Airbus signed its first UAS contracts with Drone Forge, the European Maritime Safety Agency, and the French Ministry of Armed Forces last year.

International Aircraft Dealers Association members closed out 2025 with rising confidence and solid transaction momentum, according to the group’s Fourth Quarter 2025 Market Report. It also noted improving sentiment, firm demand, and continued tight supply in the preowned business aircraft market.

IADA’s assessment of the business aircraft sales market rose to 3.72 in the fourth quarter—up from 3.47 in the third quarter and 3.32 a year earlier—on a scale where 1 represents “worst ever” and 5 “best ever.” The report attributed the gain to a combination of 100% bonus depreciation, lower interest rates, and strong equity markets, which fueled a year-end surge in buying and financing activity.

The fourth-quarter results build on optimism already evident in the previous quarter, when IADA reported improving sentiment tied to the return of bonus depreciation and constrained inventory. Respondents also highlighted a tax-driven year-end rush.

Inventory of newer, in-demand aircraft remained “extremely limited,” the report said, continuing a trend seen throughout 2025. “Buyers with very specific model, vintage, and condition requirements continued to have few aircraft choices,” while challenges related to product support continued to complicate transactions and deal closings of older aircraft. Survey results also showed a subtle shift toward a more seller-driven market.

Looking ahead, six-month demand projections eased slightly from the third quarter but remained broadly positive, with most respondents reporting stable or slightly decreased pricing.

A Boeing BBJ painted in patriotic “Freedom Plane” livery and carrying original founding-era U.S. documents will be visiting museums across the country this year to celebrate the 250th anniversary, or semiquincentennial, of the nation’s founding. The Boeing Company, which owns the aircraft, is providing the BBJ for the traveling exhibition and offering operational support.

The traveling exhibition—dubbed “Freedom Plane National Tour: Documents That Forged a Nation”—will stop at eight U.S. cities from March to August, and it will be open to the public with free admission at all venues. The National Archives and Records Administration is organizing the tour in partnership with the National Archives Foundation, with support from Boeing, Comcast, Microsoft, and Procter & Gamble.

Artifacts on board the Freedom Plane include an original engraving of the Declaration of Independence, an original copy of the 1774 Articles of Association, the 1783 Treaty of Paris, an early draft and voting records of the U.S. Constitution, and oaths of allegiance signed during the Revolutionary War by George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and Aaron Burr.

The tour will kick off on March 6 in Kansas City at the National WWI Museum and Memorial. It will subsequently make approximately two-week-long stops each in Atlanta; Los Angeles; Houston; Denver; Miami; and Dearborn, Michigan, before concluding in Seattle on August 16.

The FAA is undergoing what it is calling a long-overdue reorganization—the largest in the agency’s history. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford jointly announced the reorganization yesterday, saying the new structure is designed to bolster safety, innovation, and transparency, while supporting modernization.

Key to the reorganization is a new safety oversight office that will implement a single safety management system and risk management strategy for the FAA. Rather than having individual offices monitor their own safety metrics, the new office will pull together and share safety data from across the agency.

Other moves include the creation of an airspace modernization office to oversee activities surrounding the overhaul of the air traffic control (ATC) system, as well as an advanced aviation technologies office to manage the integration of drones, eVTOLs, and other advanced air mobility vehicles.

Further changes include consolidating finance, IT, and human resources functions under the administrator and making certain leadership roles permanent positions. The FAA maintained that the restructuring would not result in workforce cuts.

According to an FAA reorganization charter, the agency is now broken into nine major offices, with the responsibilities divided between the FAA administrator and deputy administrator (Chris Rocheleau). The agency added that the reorganization is part of its Flight Plan 2026 strategy that focuses on three pillars: people, safety, and NAS modernization.

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Long Island, New York-based aircraft charter, management, and maintenance provider Talon Air has been sold in a private transaction to an ownership group led by current CEO James Chitty, COO Nicholas Piazza, and an unidentified investment group specializing in aviation.

Vista Global had acquired a minority of Talon as part of its 2021 purchase of Apollo Jets, and its fleet of 40 midsize to heavy jets was commercially integrated with Vista subsidiary XO’s dedicated fleet. Under its new ownership, Talon—which added 12 new managed aircraft to its certificate in the fourth quarter, including nine in December alone—regained its status as an independent business run by Chitty, who led the company through a period of significant growth under the global group.

The company holds ARG/US Platinum Elite, Wyvern Wingman, and IS-BAO Stage III operational safety ratings, and also runs an FAA Part 145 repair station at its Republic Airport (KFRG) headquarters.

“This is an exciting new chapter for our airplane owners, as well as our dedicated team of employees who provide the highest level of customer support and service,” said Chitty. “By aligning ownership with leadership, Talon Air will continue to build upon the rapid growth in managed aircraft and charter hours achieved in 2025 by investing in new growth opportunities.”

The FAA has issued guidance cautioning Part 91 and Part 135 operators about safety risks associated with carrying impaired or intoxicated passengers aboard aircraft, particularly in operations where passengers may be seated close to flight controls. FAR 91.17(b) prohibits intoxicated passengers from boarding aircraft and has been in place for several decades.

In Information for Operators (InFO) 26002, the FAA said the proximity of passengers to aircraft controls in many general aviation and charter operations increases the risk of accidental or intentional interference, which can lead to loss of control or other hazardous situations. The agency noted that the likelihood of such events is higher when passengers are under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

The FAA noted that “past aviation accidents have shown that carrying intoxicated or impaired passengers can be a contributing factor.” While existing regulations prohibit carrying anyone who appears intoxicated and require air carriers to train flight attendants on alcohol service and recognition of intoxication, there is no specific regulatory training requirement for Part 91 and Part 135 flight crew members on preventing impaired passengers from boarding.

To address these risks, the FAA directed Part 91 operators holding letters of authorization under FAR 91.147, along with Part 135 operators, to incorporate behavioral recognition, observation techniques, communication skills, and intervention methods into training programs.

Wheels Up is streamlining its various private aviation products under a single brand to be delivered through what the company referred to as “a seamless, concierge-level customer engagement model.” Under the change announced today, the company pledges to provide individual travel solutions for any trip worldwide, encompassing options previously offered through its various separate flight offerings.

Its unified team will manage the delivery of private aviation membership, private ad hoc charters, group charters, and “hybrid private-commercial” itineraries through its strategic partnership with the company’s main shareholder, Delta Air Lines. Wheels Up called the move “a break from the industry standard.”

Each customer will be allocated to regionally-focused sales and service teams that will handle all travel needs. They will handle the booking process, as well as trip support and service coordination from the beginning to the end of each journey.

According to Wheels Up, the reorganization matches the regional and industry sector structure used by Delta Air Lines. The intention is that the companies’ sales teams will increasingly be co-located and work together. Today's announcement did not address recent reports that Wheels Up laid off part of its sales force earlier this month. Last year, the company said it was aiming to achieve $70 million in operational savings as part of efforts to achieve profitability.

The 23rd Living Legends of Aviation ceremony held on Friday at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, recognized several business and general aviation leaders as honorees and inductees of the organization’s annual awards. Pilots, actors, and Living Legends John Travolta and Morgan Freeman helped to host the event.

Among this year’s new inductees were Dan Drohan, founder and CEO of charter/management firm Solairus Aviation; Doug King, CEO of Epic Aircraft; musician Aaron Tippin, who with his family operates a flight school, vintage aircraft rides, maintenance, and restoration business; Gulfstream Aerospace president Mark Burns; Lee Lauderback, president and CEO of Stallion 51 and Unusual Attitude Training; and retired U.S. Air Force colonel and NASA astronaut Eileen Collins.

The Living Legends honorees included musician and helicopter pilot Randy Waldman, who received the Elling Halvorson Vertical Flight Hall of Fame Award; pilot, aircraft builder, and social media influencer Xyla Foxlin, the Barron Hilton Aviation Inspiration Award; Steuart Walton and Philipp Steinbach, co-founders of Game Aerospace, the Eren Ozmen Aviation Entrepreneur of the Year Award; Patrick Waddick, Cirrus Aircraft president of innovation and operations, the Dr. Sam B. Williams Technology Award; George A. Antoniadis, fractional provider PlaneSense founder, president, and CEO, the Kenn Ricci Lifetime Aviation Entrepreneur Award; and Signature Aviation CEO Tony Lefebvre, the Lifetime Aviation Industry Leader Award.