Textron Aviation’s Cessna Citation Ascend entered service last week with the first delivery to a retail customer. That handover to an unnamed client follows FAA certification of the aircraft in November. Launched at EBACE 2023, the Wichita manufacturer formally rolled out the first production model of the Ascend during a ceremony at its factory in September.

“The first Citation Ascend delivery underscores Textron Aviation’s commitment to redefining the midsize segment with an aircraft that blends innovation, efficiency, and unmatched comfort,” said senior v-p of sales and marketing Lannie O’Bannion. “We look forward to seeing the Ascend begin its journey with customers around the globe.”

While Textron Aviation did not disclose the first retail customer, NetJets will be among the early customers under a multiyear potential $32 billion order placed in 2023 for up to 1,500 Citation Longitudes, Latitudes, and Ascends.

One of the most significant updates to Textron Aviation’s 560XL series, the Ascend brings a flat floor and larger windows to the family, along with the Garmin G5000 avionics suite and improved performance. With three 14-inch ultra-high-resolution displays and dual flight management systems, the G5000 folds in autothrottles, synthetic vision, advanced weather detection and avoidance, and a second Iridium data link, along with optional controller-pilot datalink communications.

Aircraft operators are urgently responding to flight safety risks raised by U.S. military action in Venezuela on Saturday morning, according to aviation security intelligence providers. Over the weekend, both the FAA and EASA issued urgent airspace closure notices extending beyond Venezuela itself along the north coast of South America and the Caribbean.

Both agencies initially imposed a full closure for their operators covering Venezuela’s Maiquetia flight information region (FIR), with EASA's latest conflict zone information bulletin specifically warning that “the presence and use of a wide range of weapons and air defence systems, combined with unpredictable state responses and the potential activation of [surface-to-air missile] systems, creates a high risk to civil flights operating at all altitudes and flight levels.”

FAA notams issued early on Saturday morning prohibited U.S.-registered aircraft from flights in the adjoining airspace of Curacao, Puerto Rico, and Trinidad and Tobago, but updated notices on Sunday replaced the complete flight bans with advisories that remain in effect through February 2.

Meanwhile, aviation security experts have been conducting risk assessments in the region at least since November, when tensions escalated between the U.S. and the regime of President Nicolas Maduro. The January 3 military strikes against ground targets in and around Caracas, as U.S. forces captured Maduro, have heightened the dangers posed to civil aviation, including aircraft misidentification.

The U.S. attack on Venezuela over the weekend and its resulting airspace closures have greatly impacted civil aviation in the Caribbean region at the end of the busy holiday travel season. Passengers stranded due to canceled flights placed a sudden strain on the aircraft charter market, which was already working at near capacity over the weekend following the New Year’s celebrations.

On Saturday, Signature Aviation noted that “Commercial and general aviation activity was either significantly reduced or canceled depending on aircraft registration and routing,” and added that several of its locations in the Caribbean “are currently at or near capacity on ramp space and once restrictions are lifted, arrival accommodations will be heavily limited.”

Industry commentator Preston Holland, co-host of the VIP Seat podcast, told AIN he has heard that the current earliest estimates for charter flight availability would be tomorrow, with some operators quoting prices as high as $60,000 for a flight from the affected area—including Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands—to Miami.

“Prices have doubled while availability has shrunk significantly, with permitting being the main issue,” explained Jason Firestone, president of charter marketplace operator Flyhouse’s private client group. “It has been extremely difficult to get anything out of Puerto Rico, and even when progress is made, timelines keep getting pushed back. The situation remains very fluid, though today there appears to be a slight opening.”

Fractional-share provider Jet It filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on December 24, which involves liquidation of any nonexempt assets to pay qualifying creditors. However, in the Chapter 7 filing, Jet It checked a box saying, “After any administrative expenses are paid, no funds will be available to unsecured creditors.”

Launched in 2018 by Honda Aircraft alumni Glenn Gonzales and Vishal Hiremath, Jet It targeted buyers seeking lower costs than traditional fractional-share programs, initially operating HondaJets and later adding other types. Jet It shut down operations in May 2023 after fielding 21 HondaJets.

In the Chapter 7 filing, Jet It listed assets of $1,156,638.16 and liabilities of $36,249,727.94. Cash or cash equivalents came to $155,964.22. Jet It’s inventory of ground support and maintenance tools totals $219,825.

Major creditors include a long list of familiar aviation companies, but investor LoJet Holdings is the only one with claims secured by property, at $26.525 million.

Creditors with the largest nonpriority unsecured claims include Carolina GSE ($170,969.65); Embraer CAE Training Services ($116,616); FlightSafety International ($400,981.50); Bank of Utah ($1,575,000); Gogo ($227,775.78); Rocket Fuel Labs ($207,248); and The Dixie Building ($176,244.80). Total claims from fuel providers are nearly $1.5 million. Non-Jet It fleet charter provision was more than $628,000. Another large segment of claims is from maintenance providers, totaling more than $5.4 million.

Argentina’s National Civil Aviation Administration (ANAC) has amended civil aviation regulations to eliminate the requirement for all general aviation flights to file a flight plan, removed a ban on nighttime VFR flying, and simplified rules for Part 135 charter operators.

According to ANAC, “The measure applies to Parts 91, 121, and 135 of the RAAC (Argentine Civil Aviation Regulations) and is the result of a comprehensive technical analysis that considers technological advancements, the operational experience of the various sectors of civil aviation, and the recommendations of international organizations. In all cases, the changes are implemented while guaranteeing operational safety, which remains a guiding principle of the aeronautical authority.

“Furthermore, the requirements for air ambulance operations are being simplified, and the minimum equipment criteria are being updated, allowing a greater number of aircraft to operate under instrument flight rules, always within established safety margins.”

ANAC is also eliminating the first-class commercial pilot license’s 900-hour requirement for pilots flying for scheduled and nonscheduled airlines. The new rules will allow Part 135 operators to request approval for single-pilot operations in aircraft equipped with a three-axis autopilot and carrying fewer than 10 passengers.

Provisions to eliminate the flight plan filing requirement and allow night VFR come into effect on March 1.

South Carolina lawmakers are weighing legislation that would prohibit the “intentional injection, release, dispersion, or other emission, by any means,” of chemicals or other substances into the atmosphere, “with the express purpose of affecting temperature, weather, or the intensity of the sunlight” within the state’s borders.

The proposal, Senate Bill 110, would amend Section 48-1-110 of state law. Its preamble asserts, “it is documented that the federal government or other entities acting on the federal government’s behalf or at the federal government’s request may conduct geoengineering experiments by intentionally dispersing chemicals into the atmosphere,” and that such activities “may occur within the state of South Carolina.” 

In a December 11 medical affairs Senate subcommittee hearing, lawmakers attempted to separate constituent concerns about “chemtrails” from routine aviation operations and from legally permitted aerial spraying at low altitude for activities such as agriculture.

The FAA describes contrails as “line-shaped clouds” that sometimes form behind jet airplanes at cruise altitudes and notes they are “composed primarily of water (in the form of ice crystals).” The EPA, meanwhile, clarifies that “chemtrails” is a term “some people use to inaccurately claim that contrails resulting from routine air traffic are actually an intentional release of dangerous chemicals or biological agents,” often for “nefarious purposes.”

The FAA is continuing to alter its medication requirements to encourage pilots and other aviation personnel to seek mental health care, most recently shortening the wait times for testing on the FAA antidepressant protocol. In addition, it also altered its diabetes management requirements.

Under the former policy, an individual would have to wait six months before completing the protocol testing after beginning an antidepressant medication or a change in dosage. Now the wait time is three months on a “single, stable dose,” according to NBAA.

“The FAA has added to the list of permissible antidepressants in recent years, but the required six-month waiting period on a single, stable dose continued to have an outsized effect, as pilots are grounded immediately upon taking their first dose or changing dosage,” Mark Larsen, NBAA director of safety and flight operations, said in an association article about the changes. “The reduction of time to three months is progress toward reducing the barriers that keep pilots from seeking forms of mental health treatment.”

Other recent revisions are simplifying requirements for insulin-treated diabetes mellitus. The changes would allow insulin-dependent individuals on a continuous glucose monitor to maintain a glucose management indicator of less than 7% rather than 6.5% and a coefficient of variance of less than or equal to 36%, with less than 33% preferred, the association explained.

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