A year after the skies over the U.S. capital bore witness to one of the most tragic aviation accidents in recent history, Adam Cope, the general manager of the Signature Aviation FBO at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (KDCA), looked back at the little-known but critical role business aviation played in the post-accident response.

On Jan. 29, 2025, an American Airlines CRJ700 regional jet on final approach to KDCA collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter that transited across the approach path at an altitude of about 300 feet, killing all 67 aboard the two aircraft.

“I happened to be here handling a high-profile customer out on Taxiway Bravo, which is a remote location kind of closer to [Runway] 33 than our ramp,” he told AIN. “Initially, it was thought that a helicopter had made an emergency landing on 33, so we started getting ready to recover a helicopter.” But it became quickly apparent that there was going to be a mass response, along with airport closure.

Cope immediately focused on getting customer aircraft secured and their passengers and crews settled off the airport. The FBO staff used its shuttle vans to take them to a nearby hotel, where they could arrange their own transportation to their destinations. For the Signature facility, it would be more than a month before operations would return to normal.

Inventory of for-sale preowned business jets dipped by 12% year over year (YOY) to 1,018 aircraft this month and is down by 14% over the last six months, according to a new report from Jefferies.

Large-cabin jets are a driver of this decrease, Jefferies maintained, down 18%, followed by light jets (-11%) and midsize jets (-9%), citing its own and Amstat data. As a result, pricing has ticked up by 4% YOY. Available inventory of the business jets that Jefferies tracks stood at 4% of the in-service fleet.

Jefferies added that for younger aircraft—those less than seven years out of production—available inventories have plummeted by 32% YOY and represent 2.2% of the overall fleet. Compared with December, the Gulfstream younger inventory in January dropped by 40%, Dassault by 27%, and Textron Aviation’s Cessna jets by 17%.

Preowned Gulfstream availability shrunk even further from a year ago by 51%, to 31 units. Bombardier availability was curbed by 38%, to 42 units, and Embraer jet availability slid by 34%, to 23 units. The number of available Cessna Citations dropped by 17% YOY, to 50. But Dassault inventory levels climbed by 10%, to 22, with 4.1% of the active fleet available.

Citation average list prices soared by 32% YOY, while Gulfstream prices edged up by 0.5%. But Embraer prices dipped by 2% YOY, Bombardier by 2%, and Dassault by 8%.

Honeywell’s FMS Navigation database upgrade, which offers FMS guided visual (FGV) approaches as an optional add-on, now includes nine new FGV approaches at airports including Ocean Reef (07FA) in Florida; Albuquerque, New Mexico (KABQ); and London Biggin Hill (EGKB). The database is growing by eight to 10 approaches per month and is expected to reach nearly 100 by April, according to Honeywell.

FGV approaches help pilots mitigate the risk of flying visual approaches to runways that are constrained by obstacles or operational restrictions, or have other risky characteristics, according to Honeywell senior technical sales manager Carey Miller. Pilots using FGV approaches are experiencing large reductions in flight deviations, he added. The approaches are available for aircraft equipped with Honeywell avionics.

“This is a great way to bring stabilized approaches to runway ends without a precision approach using the existing equipment in the aircraft and only requiring a $2,000 [per-year subscription] FMS navigation database upgrade,” he said. “We also recently became a member of the Starr Aviation Insurance Safety Partnership program because of the FMS guided visual approaches.”

Recently added FGV approaches—all RNAV procedures—include two at Ocean Reef; Runway 3 at Biggin Hill; Runway 21 and 26 at KABQ; river visual Runway 19 at Ronald Reagan Washington National (KDCA); Runway 20R at Illinois’ DuPage (KDPA); Runway 29 at Newark, New Jersey (KEWR); and Runway 31L at Palm Springs, California (KPSP).

European and U.S. aviation authorities have approved Gulfstream G700/800 full-flight simulators at FlightSafety International (FSI) learning centers in Farnborough, UK, and Singapore, respectively, the aviation training company said this week.

EASA and the UK CAA have given their nods for the new level-D simulator at FSI’s Farnborough learning center. Engineered and manufactured by FlightSafety, the device will be used for initial, recurrent, and advanced pilot training supporting the G700 and G800.

“The G700 simulator certification in Farnborough reinforces FSI’s long-standing commitment to supporting Gulfstream operators across Europe,” said David Mann, Farnborough training center manager for FlightSafety International.

Separately, the company said the FAA has approved a similar G700/800 flight simulator at FlightSafety’s Singapore center. G700 training is now in operation at the Singapore facility under that approval, FSI said. This simulator is part of a configurable platform designed to expand training capability over time. Following additional regulatory approvals, FSI said the device is expected to support training for Gulfstream GVII and GVIII type ratings later this year, enabling coverage for the G500, G600, G700, and G800.

“The FAA approval is an important step forward to expand access to Gulfstream training in the Asia-Pacific region,” said FlightSafety Singapore center manager Daryl Deacon. According to the company, the approvals build on recent expansions at its Farnborough and Singapore learning centers and continue its investment in global Gulfstream training capacity.

Less than two weeks after the FAA grounded some 800 aircraft registered under the Southern Aircraft Consultancy Inc. (SACI) trust, the agency has begun issuing temporary certificates of registration (CORs) to enable them to resume operations, according to Gilchrist Aviation Law.

On January 13, the FAA announced the grounding of about 800 aircraft—including 52 turboprops, business jets, and turbine helicopters—saying that all of SACI’s aircraft registration certificates were invalid because the UK-based company violated U.S. citizenship requirements when it submitted the registration applications.  

Casper, Wyoming-based Valiair immediately stepped in to acquire SACI and has been working with the FAA and Gilchrist Aviation Law on new certificates. The law firm reported that the FAA began processing “fly-wires,” or temporary CORs, on January 23 for SACI aircraft where beneficial owners have cooperated by returning their invalid CORs and for which new registration documentation has been submitted. Clay Ferguson, an associate with Gilchrist Aviation Law, estimated that the reregistrations could be completed within a few weeks.

“The FAA has responded promptly to these submissions, allowing affected aircraft to return to service without unnecessary delay,” the law firm said. “The reregistration process is now moving quickly and efficiently. Gilchrist Aviation Law, working closely with SACI, Valiair, and the FAA, has been able to reregister SACI aircraft within a matter of days of receipt of the old COR.”

Bell delivered 78 commercial helicopters in the fourth quarter, unchanged from a year earlier, as the rotorcraft manufacturer’s revenues climbed 11%, to $1.3 billion, driven by the accelerating MV-75 military program.

Fourth-quarter commercial deliveries included forty 505s, twenty-one 407s, sixteen 429s, and one 412. This compares with thirty-five 505s, twenty-three 407s, fifteen 429s, and five 412s in the same period in 2024. Military deliveries totaled just one V-22 Osprey in the quarter, down from two V-22s delivered in fourth-quarter 2024.

For the full year, Bell delivered 169 commercial helicopters, compared with 172 in 2024. The 2025 deliveries comprised eighty-four 505s, forty-eight 407s, twenty-nine 429s, and eight 412s. Military deliveries totaled eight V-22s in 2025, down from 14 V-22s—as well as four H-1s—delivered in 2024.

“Bell also had a very strong year with revenue up 11% for the fourth quarter and 20% for the full year,” Textron executive chairman Scott Donnelly said during Wednesday’s earnings call. “With the acceleration of the MV-75 program, 2025 marks Bell’s second consecutive year of 20% growth in military revenue.”

Lisa Atherton, who previously served as CEO of Bell, is now CEO of Textron. “I think the Army’s been crystal clear about their desire to move faster,” she said regarding the MV-75 program, noting that program acceleration has pulled forward the timeline by approximately two and a half to three years.

Flight Pro International has launched a webinar series to help business aviation operators navigate international compliance and regulatory requirements. The video series “Connecting the Dots” is produced by the company’s in-house compliance and regulatory department and is available on demand on Flight Pro’s website. Three episodes are currently posted, with additional installments planned.

The series is led by company director of contracts and compliance Rick Snider and senior manager of compliance Jeffrey Basham. Both have more than three decades of aviation experience and regularly publish compliance guidance for Flight Pro clients through the company’s monthly Connections newsletter and industry publications.

“Our goal is to reach, and hopefully provide ongoing education to, operators through a video series in addition to the written articles we periodically publish,” Snider said.

Early episodes address Europe’s new Entry/Exit System and European Travel Information and Authorization System requirements, preflight travel documentation, and legal considerations for travelers holding dual citizenship. Planned topics include emissions reporting support in Europe and the UK, air navigation requirements in Mexico and Central America, and multiple U.S. customs, visa, and authorization programs.

Flight Pro said the series is designed as an additional educational resource for its audience on compliance-related issues. Audience feedback may help shape future topics. “We’ve encouraged our audience to request any special interest topics they are eager to have addressed,” Basham said.

Join us March 26 in Cleveland for the prestigious AIN FBO Awards Dinner & Gala—an unforgettable evening of networking, celebration, and recognition of the industry’s top FBOs. Enjoy a formal dinner and witness the first reveal of the 2026 survey winners. Limited tickets available; purchase today. Table & event sponsorship opportunities are also available.