Bombardier's Global 8000 is making its airshow flightline debut later this month during the Farnborough International Airshow. This will mark the Global family’s return to an airshow flightline in more than 20 years, in addition to being the Global 8000’s first such aerial display.

With an eye on potential head-of-state and special-mission applications, Bombardier will showcase the ultra-long-range, Mach 0.95 business jet’s capabilities—short-field takeoff, climb, and agility—during the aerial display. Entering service in late 2025, the Global 8000 has an 8,000-nm range and a 2,691-foot cabin altitude with an ability to operate at a range of airports often not accessible for aircraft of its size.

Bombardier, which plans to promote its Challenger and Global families at the UK show, has long had a defense presence in Europe. Its Global 6500 has been selected for special-mission applications in Germany and Sweden, along with Canada, the U.S., Korea, and Australia.

The Canadian aircraft manufacturer further noted that its portfolio is backed up by a European product support network that includes full maintenance facilities at London Biggin Hill and in Berlin, and line maintenance stations in Farnborough, Paris, Geneva, Luton, Nice, and Linz.

“Bombardier Defense has built a strong reputation across Europe,” said Stephen McCullough, executive v-p of engineering, product development, and Bombardier Defense. The company’s portfolio “aligns with Europe’s focus on readiness and capability modernization,” he added.

Classic Lear Jet Foundation, the nonprofit group looking to return the first production Learjet (23-003) to flight status, is continuing to mark progress on the restoration project in Wichita. Last month, the leading edges of the horizontal stabilizer were removed at the start of the tail unit’s structural inspection. Once that is accomplished, it will be transported to DAS Aviation for full overhaul.

The wing assembly from a later Lear 23 (23-028), which was acquired for parts, is now on a work stand undergoing a leak test before the removal of wing systems. The group has not yet determined whether this unit will be swapped for 003’s original wing. The aircraft’s existing 62-year-old wiring was removed early on in the process and deemed unsalvageable, so a new harness is being fashioned.

The twinjet’s landing gear was removed and driven down to Daytona, Florida, where it will be refurbished by Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Accompanying it was a box of hydraulic actuators that will be tested and restored by Nobel Jet in Fort Lauderdale.

Earlier, fuselage skins were removed to expose areas of suspected airframe corrosion and allow for more detailed examination. To help fund the restoration, the group recently launched an online store offering expanded merchandise, mission collectibles, apparel, drinkware, and more, with all profits fueling the goal of returning 23-003 to the sky.

For those flying business aircraft to Europe this summer and looking to avoid operational headaches at airports, flight-planning resource OpsGroup has condensed its normal individual country guides into one source this year. 

Maps of Misery: Europe Summer Parking Guide 2026 provides aircraft operators with detailed information on ramp availability at the most popular airports, as well as recommended alternate repositioning locations in many of the jet-set vacation destinations such as Spain (including the Balearics), Greece, Italy (including Sardinia and Sicily), France, Portugal, and Croatia.

Segmented by region, the guide offers maps listing airports and designating their parking availability as “Good, Not-so-bad, or Ugly,” helping users make educated decisions about the trade-offs they may need to make in terms of proximity to desired locations. Sprinkled in are regulations regarding parking request window timing and key operational details about each airport, such as slot requirements.

The group warns that the situations at these airports can change rapidly, and that while its maps “come with absolutely no warranty whatsoever,” it will work to keep them updated.

Duncan Aviation is celebrating 70 years as a family-owned leader in business aviation, tracing its growth from a small Midwestern Beechcraft distributorship to the world's largest family-owned business aircraft service provider. The milestone highlights the company's culture, innovations, workforce, and legacy through a special anniversary edition of Duncan Debrief.

The average hourly rate for guaranteed jet cards ticked up in the second quarter by roughly half a point from a year ago, but softened by 1% from the first quarter, according to data from Private Jet Card Comparisons (PJCC).

In North America, rates averaged $11,314 per hour by the end of June, an amount that PJCC said is 27% more than pre-Covid levels. PJCC, which maintains a database comparing more than 1,000 jet card and fractional offerings, explained that jet cards typically guarantee base hourly pricing for at least a year but may vary considering fuel surcharges.

Light-jet guaranteed rates slid by 1.2% from the first quarter, to $8,456 per hour, but were up 1.4% year over year (YOY). Meanwhile, the average for the ultra-long-range jet was down 0.5% quarter over quarter, to $19,202 per hour, but up by 0.9% YOY. The only quarter-over-quarter increase came with super-midsize jets, up 0.7% to $12,526.

In other categories, turboprops averaged $6,271 per hour, down 6.8% from the first quarter and -4.8% YOY. Very light jets ended the quarter at $7,688 per hour, down 2.1% from the first three months but up 1.1% YOY. Midsize jets came in at $9,557 per hour, down 0.8% from the first quarter and -2.6% YOY. And large-cabin jets averaged $15,236 per hour, down 2.4% from the first quarter but up 0.5% YOY.

Aircraft sales, training, and management provider Aerocor of Henderson, Nevada, is now offering dry-lease access to Beechcraft Premier and Eclipse 500 twinjets for initial and recurrent flight training. The training program targets owner-pilots whose aircraft are in maintenance and need to stay current without a gap in training, and prospective buyers who want to train or to complete one or two instructional flights through Aerocor’s Aircraft Experience Program before taking ownership.

“An aircraft in maintenance or a purchase still in progress shouldn’t delay training,” said Aerocor director of flight training Jens Personius. “Now Premier and Eclipse 500 pilots have a path to stay current or get trained before they own, without waiting on their own aircraft.”

Aerocor launched in-aircraft type rating training for the Beechcraft Premier I/IA in January 2025, adding to its existing type rating and recurrent training program for the Eclipse 500/550. The company is one hub of Premier type rating training, alongside FlightSafety International, which operates a simulator at its Wichita East learning center.

Aerocor’s instructors bring military, airline, and jet backgrounds to training events and fly the same aircraft they teach in.

Pro Star Aviation has added the Gulfstream G280 to its list of Gogo Galileo low-earth-orbit (LEO) satcom installations. Galileo provides global connectivity via Eutelsat’s OneWeb LEO network.

With speeds up to 60 Mbps down and 11 Mbps up, the Gogo Galileo half-duplex antenna measures 24 by 11.8 by 2.1 inches and weighs 21.6 pounds. In the G280 installation, the electronically steered antenna is mounted on top of the fuselage forward of the vertical stabilizer.

According to Pro Star, “The upgrade supports a cabin experience closer to office-level connectivity, especially on longer-range missions where passengers expect consistent access to cloud applications, video calls, and real-time communication.”

“With demand for next-generation connectivity consistently rising, we’re focused on delivering solutions that meet the evolving needs of our customers,” said Pro Star director of sales and marketing Jeff Shaw. “Completing our first Galileo installation on the Gulfstream G280 reflects our continued investment in increasing our installation capabilities and providing operators with reliable, high-performance connectivity across a broader range of aircraft.”

AIN sister publication Business Jet Traveler’s 16th annual Readers’ Choice survey is now open, and we invite you to share your private flying experiences. Your participation helps shape industry insights while supporting a great cause. For each completed survey, BJT will donate to Corporate Angel Network, which provides free flights to cancer treatment for patients and their families. Take the survey.