California-based aircraft operator and charter marketplace provider FlyHouse has acquired Dallas-area FAA Part 145 aircraft maintenance, repair, and overhaul provider Jets MRO. Launched in January 2024, the company specializes in business aircraft maintenance and aircraft-on-ground (AOG) support.

Jets MRO was founded by aviation industry veteran Suresh Narayanan, whose background includes aircraft maintenance and operations. Under his direction, the company has built a reputation for technical expertise, experienced technicians, and responsive service.

“Our focus has always been delivering dependable maintenance with speed, precision, and accountability,” said Narayanan, who will remain with the company as president of MRO services. “Joining FlyHouse allows us to expand that work on a larger platform while continuing to serve FlyHouse partners and operators across the most important aviation markets in the country.”

Jets MRO also has a satellite aircraft component repair facility in the Miami area, which was included in the transaction.

Aeromedical operator Life Flight Network inked an order for a dozen Pilatus PC-12 Pro turboprop singles yesterday at Verticon 2026. The 10-year deal, worth about $82 million at list prices, also makes the Aurora, Oregon company the U.S. launch customer for the airplane with an aeromedical interior. Deliveries to Life Flight are set to begin next year.

Under the agreement, the aircraft will be outfitted for ICU-level care and transport at Pilatus Aircraft USA’s facility in Broomfield, Colorado. Life Flight already has 16 aeromedical-configured PC-12s in its fleet, in addition to about 40 aeromedical helicopters. The firm order will be for replacement aircraft, but the company holds options for additional PC-12 Pros to support fleet growth.

Founded nearly 50 years ago, Life Flight is known for clinical excellence, operational reliability, and rapid response across diverse and often remote terrain. Its service region spans the Pacific Northwest, the Intermountain West, and Hawaii.

“The PC-12 Pro provides the performance, reliability, and advanced safety technology necessary to serve our communities,” said Life Flight CEO Ben Clayton. “We are committed to investing in aircraft that enhance patient care, support our crews, and uphold the highest standards of safety.”

Wheels Up plans to double its fleets of Embraer Phenom 300s and Bombardier Challenger 300/350s this year as the private flight provider has found demand for its Signature Membership program stronger than expected, the company announced yesterday.

The company has been streamlining its fleets, phasing out its older Cessna Citation, Hawker, and Beechcraft King Air models while it leans into the Challengers and Phenoms. Wheels Up is not sharing how many Challengers or Phenoms are in its fleet, but its 10-K at the end of 2025 stated the company had nine owned and leased Challenger 300/350s and 21 Phenom 300s at year's end. 

Wheels Up cited the higher operational reliability, customer satisfaction, and unit economic performance of the models under its Signature program for the growth. This has surpassed its original expectations when it rolled out the Signature program in September, Wheels Up added.

"When we introduced our fleet modernization strategy in late 2024, we asked our team and our partners to trust a direction they could not fully see yet. Today, they can see it,” said Mark Briffa, chief sales officer. “This is the right time to accelerate."

Further, the company is closing sales of its Legacy Membership at the end of the month while Signature becomes its flagship offering. However, it stressed that all existing member contracts would be honored through their full term.

StandardAero established an authorized installer network for the Thales and StandardAero StableLight four-axis autopilot system for Airbus H125 and AS350 helicopters, and has named three initial repair stations to the program, the Scottsdale, Arizona-based company announced yesterday at Verticon in Atlanta.

StableLight is the only fully integrated four-axis autopilot currently available for the H125 and AS350 series, according to StandardAero. The system provides enhanced safety, precision handling, reduced pilot workload, and mission flexibility.

The installer network is designed to maintain installation standards, ensure compliance, and expand geographical access for operators seeking the autopilot system. StandardAero delivers each system as a complete installation kit with all components and instructions.

The first three authorized autopilot installers in the program are AeroBrigham in Decatur, Texas; Precision Aviation Services in Georgia; and Aero Products in Arizona.

AeroBrigham, an FAA Part 145 repair station and helicopter completions specialist, purchased a StableLight kit in 2025 for installation on a customer’s new H125, making it the first authorized installer. The installation is expected to be completed soon. 

For Bombardier, Embraer, and Gulfstream aircraft, DAS Aviation offers comprehensive thrust reverser and inlet exchange programs designed to minimize downtime and keep aircraft in service.

The National Research Council of Canada (NRC) has purchased a new Bombardier Global 6500 to augment its research fleet. Part of a CA$900 million ($663 million U.S.) NRC investment, the acquisition will help support defense and dual-application research and development activities.

The NRC’s Global 6500 purchase builds on the Canadian government’s order for six of the type in December 2025, strengthening Canada’s continued confidence in the aircraft, Bombardier stated. Additionally, the airframer believes its decades of experience in delivering special mission-configured aircraft make it particularly well-suited to support the NRC’s work.

To join the NRC’s existing fleet of aircraft based in Ottawa, the Global 6500 will be by far the largest of a line-up of fixed-wing assets, including a Convair CV-580, Dassault Falcon 20, DHC Twin Otter, North American Harvard, and Lockheed T-33.

Under Canada’s Defense Industrial Strategy, the NRC says it is investing to “develop aerospace defense capabilities, support Canadian small and medium-sized enterprises, [and develop] technologies for civilian and military purposes.” This includes over CA$500 million to “advance next-generation aerospace technologies and support the development of autonomous systems and new defense solutions.”

Alongside the acquisition of the new aircraft, the NRC will also use this money to create a new drone innovation hub to “enhance drone and counter-drone development and testing capabilities, and provide a path for industry to qualify new technologies for drones."

After a two-year return-to-service project involving a 1992 Gulfstream IV-SP, Asian Sky Group (ASG) has sold the refurbished jet to a U.S. client. ASG hired Crew Chiefs to oversee the project, which included maintenance planning, regulatory compliance, avionics upgrades, and coordination of operational support.

Airframe work was done by Thornton Aviation at Van Nuys Airport (KVNY) in Southern California, while Gulfstream’s KVNY facility did the avionics upgrades. These included upgrading the FMS to Honeywell’s FMZ-2000 Version 6.1, according to ASG. All aircraft records were digitized and cataloged by Bluetail, "which is no small feat for an aircraft that entered service in 1992,” ASG noted.

“The decision to work with Crew Chiefs was to take advantage of the company’s combination of technical, CAMO, and management services,” according to ASG. “They have the technical expertise, capability, and capacity to ensure our aircraft is maintained and meets compliance requirements to the highest standards. They provide clear technical guidance, manage workflow, ensure all teams are aligned, and the client remains well informed.”

“We exercised our TechConnect maintenance management program to include aircraft records digitization through Bluetail, close coordination with Gulfstream, and Thornton Aviation in Van Nuys to the return to service and delivery support for the new owner,” said Crew Chiefs founder and CEO Mark Thibault.

Omni Aircraft Maintenance is working on FAA supplemental type certificate approval for Gogo Galileo FDX for Challenger 300s, 350s, and 3500s. The Tulsa, Oklahoma-based MRO expects to complete the certification in August and is handling all development, engineering, testing, certification, and installation work at its own facilities.

Gogo Galileo FDX leverages Eutelsat OneWeb’s low-earth-orbit satellite network to deliver global high-speed connectivity enabling videoconferencing, cloud-based applications, and high-bandwidth passenger use.

“This is a major advancement for the Challenger platform,” said Omni executive v-p of sales and business development Tim Lockerby. “The [Challenger] 300, 350, and 3500 are exceptional aircraft that are critical workhorses for corporate and fleet operators. Until now, high-speed global connectivity with aviation-specific hardware has been one of the few remaining limitations. Galileo FDX changes that completely.”

Omni has begun engaging with Challenger operators to support early interest, aligned maintenance events, and installation planning opportunities. “This program represents exactly how we approach innovation at Omni,” Lockerby said. “We don’t wait for capability gaps to be solved—we invest in solving them ourselves when we know it will materially improve the aircraft for operators.”