Bombardier’s Global 8000 has established its first speed record on a journey between Montreal and Nice, France, as it was transporting passengers to the Monaco F1 Grand Prix, the company reported today.

Completed in a little more than six hours, the record marks a milestone for the business jet that entered service in December and was certified with a Mach 0.95 Mmo, making it the fastest civil aircraft since Concorde. Bombardier president and CEO Éric Martel was on board the record flight.

The Global 8000 received Transport Canada approval in November, followed by FAA and EASA nods in December and January. By the beginning of the year, it had replaced the Mach 0.925 Global 7500 on the production line. The predecessor model had set more than 150 of its own speed records.

In addition to speed, the Global 8000 extends the range by 200 nm over the original model to 8,000 nm. The Global 8000 is “setting the pace in the ultra-long-range class,” said Stephen McCullough, executive v-p of engineering, product development, and Bombardier Defense. “With this latest accomplishment, the Global 8000 continues to illustrate its industry-leading attributes.”

There has been plenty of commentary lately about the strength of the preowned business jet market, and I agree with the sentiment. It is a seller’s market with buyers outnumbering sellers with what seems like unending demand caused by plenty of wealth creation.

Whenever I catch myself saying things like this, I stop and play pessimist and wonder when the music will stop playing. The war in the Middle East and high fuel prices do not seem to be quelling this demand lately.

One thing that has remained consistent and strong, however, is the U.S. stock market, which is currently more than 51,000 points. The strength of the stock market seems to have trumped the events happening in the world and is relatively undeterred by them.

One of our clients asked recently when we think the rising costs of fuel, aircraft maintenance, engine programs, and pilot salaries will slow down the preowned market. The answer I gave him was I do not think that is going to be what does it.

When demand is this strong, history tells us that the root cause of a market correction rarely comes from within—instead, it comes from the outside. Let’s revisit the last three events that have significantly affected preowned values to decline substantially.

SD Government, a division of Gogo, has secured a $7.5 million blanket purchase agreement with NOAA to provide satellite communications and related services for the agency’s Hurricane Hunter fleet just as the 2026 hurricane season begins.

The contract covers L-band satellite communications, ground infrastructure, and cybersecurity solutions routed through Gogo’s data center in Melbourne, Florida, along with Gogo’s FlightDeck Freedom cockpit datalink software suite. The agreement supports NOAA’s Aircraft Operations Center, which operates the Hurricane Hunter fleet—a group of Lockheed Martin WP-3Ds that includes Kermit and Miss Piggy, aircraft named after the beloved Muppet characters.

Ben Massey, senior v-p of government sales at Gogo, said the agreement supports NOAA’s mission of delivering critical atmospheric data to those who need it most. “We’re proud to support the delivery of vital data from the storm’s eye to decision-makers, using our robust and reliable networks and infrastructure,” he said.

SDG describes itself as a provider of secure, end-to-end satellite connectivity services for government and military operators. It offers solutions across geostationary, medium-earth-orbit, and low-earth-orbit satellite constellations, encompassing L-, Ku-, and Ka-band frequencies.

The Hurricane Hunter aircraft collect live atmospheric data by flying directly into tropical storms and hurricanes, providing real-time information used by the National Hurricane Center and other agencies to support storm tracking and response.

Global business aircraft flying last month climbed 3.1% year over year (YOY), with North America up 2.1% from May 2025 and Europe seeing a more anemic 0.5% gain, according to the latest TraqPak data from Argus International. For this month, Argus is forecasting 1% and 0.4% YOY increases in North America and Europe, respectively.

“All signs point to a slower growth rate in June, but we do expect it to be a positive month for activity,” said Argus senior v-p for software Travis Kuhn. “The two biggest areas for concern are Part 91 and large-cabin jet activity.”

North American activity in May was buoyed by strong fractional growth of 12.5%, eclipsing the 3.5% rise in charter flying. Meanwhile, Part 91 flying fell by 3.5%. By aircraft category in the region, turboprops led the pack with a 4.8% YOY gain in May, followed by light jets and midsize jets, which were up 3.6% and 1.8%, respectively. Large-cabin jet flying dipped 5.2%.

In Europe, light and midsize jets provided much of the momentum last month, climbing 2.2% and 2%, respectively. Turboprop flying eked out a 0.1% gain, while large-cabin jets were in the red, falling 2%.

The rest of the world reported an 8.9% YOY increase in activity, with all aircraft categories in the positive. Light jets led the surge with a 20.3% rise, followed by midsize jets, +12.9%; turboprops, +7.9%; and large-cabin jets, +0.7%.

While the air charter community is seeing some progress in the decades-long battle to fight illegal charter, much more needs to be done, FAA and industry executives stressed during the NATA Air Charter Forum yesterday morning. NATA Air Charter Committee co-chairs Andrew Schmertz, CEO of Hopscotch Air, and Barry Lambert, executive v-p of Southern Sky Aviation, stressed that the issue remains a top priority for the community.

“That’s been one of my biggest hot buttons,” Lambert said, adding that a significant amount of his time on the committee has involved working on the illegal charter issue. “I think we’ve made significant progress. We’re not all the way there yet, but we’ve had excellent conversations with the FAA,” Schmertz noted.

The charter community is increasingly reporting illegal activity, enabling the FAA to follow up on this activity, Michael Bush with the FAA Safe Air Charter Team told attendees. New entrants and novice passengers underscore the need to continue to expand on efforts to educate both passengers and operators about the issue.

FAA illegal charter hotline reports have grown in recent years, with 231 from 2018 to 2019, 460 between 2020 and 2022, and up to 485 from 2023 to 2025. Bush noted that as members in the charter community become increasingly more educated about the subject, they are encouraged to report.

Atlantic Aviation has officially opened its new FBO at Napa County Airport (KAPC) in California’s wine region. Work to replace the company’s former 2,000-sq-ft terminal began in late 2024. It was torn down in March to provide more ramp space.

The new 9,500-sq-ft terminal features a spacious lobby with a fireplace and café area, crew lounge with snooze rooms and shower facilities, and a 12-seat conference room. An adjoining 39,000-sq-ft hangar with an additional 3,100 sq ft of shop and office space can accommodate the latest ultra-long-range business jets. It brings the complex to 89,000 sq ft of aircraft storage space. Also added was a fuel farm with a capacity of 40,000 gallons of jet-A and 10,000 gallons of avgas.

The facility was designed with a wide range of environmentally conscious features, including the use of recycled-content building materials, solar panels, energy-efficient lighting, bio-retention systems to improve stormwater quality, water-conserving plumbing fixtures, and native landscaping to reduce irrigation demand.

“This project represents far more than a new building—it is an investment in the overall experience of flying into Napa Valley,” said Atlantic CEO Jeff Foland. “We designed this facility to deliver the exceptional service, comfort, and operational reliability our customers expect while also creating an environment that reflects the quality and hospitality synonymous with this region.”

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