Duncan Aviation inaugurated an expanded turbine engine overhaul shop at its Lincoln, Nebraska headquarters during an event late last week attended by Duncan leaders, state and local government dignitaries, airport officials, and construction partners. VIP attendees received a limited-edition challenge coin commemorating Duncan Aviation’s 70th anniversary, depicting the four generations of the Duncan family involved in the company.

The facility adds to Duncan Aviation’s engine overhaul capabilities, especially related to the company’s Pratt & Whitney Canada-designated overhaul facility status.

“This facility represents a significant investment in our future,” said chairman Todd Duncan. “It expands our capabilities, strengthens our engine service offerings, and positions us to better serve customers from across the country and around the world. Strong businesses need strong communities, and strong communities benefit from thriving businesses.”

Among the attendees were Lincoln mayor Leirion Baird, Lincoln Airport Authority leaders Michael Griffin and Chad Neuhalfen, and Nebraska legislative senators Carolyn Bosn and Jason Prokop, as well as Duncan Aviation’s senior management team and representatives from the project’s key construction and engineering partners, including Hausmann Construction, Commonwealth Electric, and Rasmussen Air and Gas Energy.

The FCC will vote on July 22 on an order to auction 160 MHz of spectrum in the upper C-band (3.98 to 4.14 GHz) next year, a move the agency said exceeds the 100-MHz minimum Congress established. The auction would create a contiguous 440-MHz block when combined with the lower C-band (3.7 to 3.98 GHz), which the FCC previously cleared.

The FAA issued a statement saying it is confident that 5G signals from the auction band can safely coexist with aviation “after years of FAA-led testing and technical analysis.” The agency said it worked with the FCC to incorporate safeguards into the auction order, including limiting the power of auctioned 5G signals to levels the FAA has determined are safe for aviation, protecting the radar altimeter band with a buffer band between it and the auctioned frequencies, and limiting the height of 5G transmission towers.

“Additionally, the FCC’s order will ensure the functionality of key altimeter-based alerting systems, including terrain avoidance warning systems,” the FAA said.

In the third quarter, the FAA plans to issue its own rule requiring aircraft radar altimeter upgrades to ensure these devices can operate safely alongside 5G signals from the auctioned spectrum. The FCC order also proposes rebates to support domestic aviation operators and owners in upgrading their altimeters.

Shortly after EAA AirVenture 2026 ends on July 26, Jeppesen ForeFlight will release Clear Notams, an AI-powered translation of notams. In another effort to tap into AI tools, Jeppesen ForeFlight has released ForeFlight AI Connector, a way for users to connect ChatGPT to ForeFlight for AI-assisted queries. Another new release is Scheduler, designed to help flight schools and independent instructors manage their businesses.

“I’m excited to see what the community does with the AI connector,” said Jeppesen ForeFlight CEO Brad Surak. “It unleashes the creativity of our customers. I fly regularly, [and] it always is painful to read the notams ahead of a flight, and so I’m loving the Clear Notams.

“What we’re doing with flight schools is pretty cool; we’re releasing the Scheduler app. [It] can help a single CFI managing their business, or could scale to a flight school with multiple locations, and that’s going to help ease the administrative burden.

“In the end, [we’re] focusing on things that make flying safer, make you smarter by reducing your cognitive load while you’re flying, and then make you faster, because you don’t have to do as much paperwork and administrative stuff. All of them are things that we’ve been thinking about for a long time, and when we had this ability to go faster, those are some of the top ideas that we wanted to get out.”

Nigeria’s Kasi Healthcare is buying a pair of Airbus H135 helicopters for its medevac operation. The companies announced the deal at the third Nigeria Airlift Forum yesterday, saying that Kasi will be the Nigerian launch customer for the helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) version of the light-twin model.

Kasi intends to operate the helicopters from bases in Lagos and in Port Harcourt. The medical group also has access to airplanes operated by its partner Nesto Aviation Services.

Under the terms of the contract, Airbus Helicopters will assist Kasi Healthcare with tasks including training for flight crew and maintenance technicians. The H135, which is equipped with the Helionix digital avionics suite and a four-axis autopilot, will be supplied to the client with a flexible cabin interior for medical specialists and their equipment.

“This strategic investment transforms our ability to provide rapid, life-saving patient transfers and critical care in transit,” said Kasi Healthcare medical director Dayo Osholowu. “Partnering with Airbus allows us to elevate national healthcare standards and deliver dependable emergency response when and where it is needed most.”

The H135 offers a range of up to 338 nm and requires only intermediate inspections every 500 flight hours. According to Airbus, it has manufactured more than half of the roughly 3,000 HEMS-equipped rotorcraft worldwide, with most of these being H135s or H145s.

Citation operators look to extend aircraft life and enhance capability, West Star Aviation leads the evolution of cockpit avionics upgrades—delivering expert flight deck solutions specifically tailored to turbine aircraft.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has broken ground on a dedicated research range for advanced air mobility aircraft at the Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center (MMAC) in Oklahoma City. Known as the Vertical Procedures and Analysis Range (V-PAR), the $8.3 million facility—to sit on the west side of the MMAC campus, next to Will Rogers World Airport (KOKC)—will give the FAA and its partners a safe place to study how vertical-takeoff-and-landing aircraft operate, especially emerging electric and hybrid-electric designs, to help inform future operating procedures and standards.

“The V-PAR is a critical step in helping the FAA better understand how to integrate advanced air mobility aircraft safely into the National Airspace System,” said U.S. Transportation deputy secretary Steven Bradbury. “This facility will strengthen our ability to conduct research, train people, and support the future of aviation.”

FAA deputy administrator Chris Rocheleau said the range will help the agency gather the data and operational insights needed to support safe integration. According to the FAA, the facility “brings together operational infrastructure, regulatory personnel, human factors laboratories, procedure experts, and simulation capabilities in one location.”

Its initial buildout includes a touchdown-and-liftoff area, a taxiway, an aircraft apron with two parking spaces, a covered shelter, an observation and operations building, and charging stations for electric aircraft.

A coalition of six aviation associations including NATA, AOPA, EAA, GAMA, NBAA, and VAI sent a letter of support for California Senate Bill 661, which would curb decades of aviation fuel tax diversion in the state.

The bill would move California toward compliance with FAA requirements that aviation fuel tax revenue be used solely for aviation purposes, according to the June 24 letter to bill sponsor Sen. Melissa Hurtado (D-California). The associations specifically backed SB 661’s allocation of 20% of revenue to general aviation airports.

“The state’s 214 general aviation airports offer tremendous public benefit, providing essential support for firefighting, disaster relief, medical care, and law enforcement services; enabling local business development and job creation; and providing air transportation in communities without scheduled air service,” the associations wrote.

NATA’s managing director of industry affairs, Juliet Jordan, testified before the California Assembly Revenue and Taxation Committee, which advanced the bill unanimously. SB 661 next heads to the Appropriations Committee before consideration by the full assembly.

AIN Media Group has appointed highly experienced aerospace and air transport journalist Howard Hardee as editor of its Leeham News and Analysis (LNA) platform. He starts the new role on July 1 with overall responsibility for LNA’s in-depth and independent coverage of the aerospace and airline sectors.

Hardee is taking the reins at LNA from its co-founder and editor, Scott Hamilton, who is transitioning toward retirement in 2027 and will contribute articles in his new role as editor-at-large. Co-founder Bjorn Fehrm—a highly experienced aerospace engineer by background—is continuing in his role as aeronautical and economic analyst, covering technical topics. Hardee will manage LNA’s roster of specialist writers.

Since August 2022, Hardee has worked as Americas aviation reporter for FlightGlobal, covering airlines and future technology. With 15 years of experience in journalism, he has previously covered a variety of topics, including science and politics, having started his career with his hometown newspaper in Chico, California. He earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Under Hardee’s leadership, LNA will work closely with AIN’s team of reporters, capitalizing on their respective strengths in exclusive, detailed analysis and constant live news reporting. For almost 20 years, LNA has closely followed leading commercial aviation OEMs and their supporting supply chain. The publication was acquired by AIN Media Group last year.

Eleven people—a pilot and 10 skydivers—lost their lives on Sunday when a Pilatus PC-6 Turbo Porter crashed soon after takeoff from Nancy-Essey Airport (LFSN) in eastern France. Accident investigators from the French BEA agency are working on the scene to understand what happened to the German-registered turboprop single (D-FIPS), which is registered to KIAS Airlines/Classic Wings but, according to the Aviation Safety Network, was operated for a company called Tandemotion Parachutisme.

The PC-6, manufactured in 1991, crashed around 1,000 feet from Nancy-Essey’s Runway 21 on a road just outside the airport perimeter. French interior minister Laurent Nunez and transport minister Philippe Tabarot visited the scene of the accident. According to the BEA, this was France’s most serious general aviation crash involving skydiving in roughly 30 years.

Local media reports state that the skydivers were due to make their first parachute jumps in tandem configurations with instructors. Powered by a single Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-27 engine, the aircraft can carry up to 10 passengers and has a payload limit of 2,646 pounds.