Global business jet departures have dipped by 4% over the past four weeks compared with the same period last year, indicating “significantly worse” performance than the 2% year-to-date decline, according to WingX. Management fleets have held steady this year, still down 1.2%, but corporate and charter departures have dipped notably, by 12% and 9.7%, respectively, year-to-date, WingX further noted. Fractional departures, however, up 10%, are still helping to offset these declines.

“Business jet demand is navigating turbulent waters with the approach of the U.S. election, outgoing and incoming hurricanes across the Southeast [U.S.], economic stagnation in Europe, and escalating conflicts in the Middle East,” said WingX managing director Richard Koe. “The combined headwinds are clearly widening the declines in comparison to 2023, which itself was a reset from the post-Covid high points in 2022.”

For week 40 of the year—September 30 through October 6—traffic was down by 3% over week 39 globally, despite rebounding in activity following Hurricane Helene in the U.S. Two weeks ago, Florida saw a double-digit drop in activity, but that was back up by 25%, sequentially, in the most recent week.

In Europe, activity in week 40 dropped by 8% compared with week 39 and by 4% year over year. UK business jet operations are down 7% from a year ago and Germany by 5%. Switzerland's operations are up 4%.

The Air Charter Association (ACA) is focusing on the need for a clear industry standard for U.S. charter brokers as the organization works to strengthen its presence in North America. The association, which in June named business aviation veteran Ryan Waguespack to its newly formed non-executive board to represent the North American region, recently hosted its inaugural regional roundtable in the U.S. at Centennial Airport in Denver.

The lack of such an industry standard was a key area of concern among attendees at last month's event, hosted by Mayo Aviation and open to all U.S. charter professionals. This goes to the heart of ACA’s membership, the organization said, noting that its members must undergo an accreditation process to ensure they meet certain standards. In addition, ACA has developed an Air Charter Broker Qualification and launched an online broker training course.

Also discussed at the roundtable were topics that ranged from market trends and workforce challenges to the regulatory landscape, illegal charter, and cybersecurity.

ACA plans to host a series of these roundtables throughout the U.S., it said, noting that it has found “great success” with its European forums. These have provided a platform to bring together industry leaders to discuss key issues, the association added.

Richard “Rick” Crider, director of Arizona's Prescott Regional/Ernest A. Love Field Airport (KPRC), will receive the National Air Transportation Association's Airport Executive Partnership Award. It will be presented to Crider at an awards luncheon in Nashville on November 13, which coincides with the organization’s Aviation Business Conference.

The accolade, first presented in 1994 to Loretta Scott at Tyler Pounds Regional Airport in Texas, recognizes airport managers who successfully foster relationships between airport operators and aviation businesses.

“This award is very humbling,” Crider remarked. “To be acknowledged alongside industry giants is a true honor.” Under his guidance, Prescott Regional has emerged as a key player in general aviation, supporting over 350 aircraft and housing six flight schools, a major U.S. Forest Service Fire Center, and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

At Prescott, Cutter Aviation broke ground on a substantial ramp expansion earlier this year, adding 86,973 sq ft of space to its facility. This project, which will nearly double the FBO’s aircraft parking capacity, reflects the growing demand for general aviation services at the airport. Crider, chair of the American Association of Airport Executives board of directors, previously worked at Port San Antonio and was involved in strategic oversight of a joint-use airport.

Qatar Executive charter flight customers now have access to Avios loyalty points under a partnership announced today with the business jet operator’s parent company, Qatar Airways. The new offering provides reciprocal benefits between Qatar Executive and the airline’s Privilege Club loyalty program.

Privilege Club members booking flights directly with Qatar Executive will earn four Avios points for every $1 spent on a charter. They will be able to redeem these points for private jet flights, either in full or on a cash-plus-Avios-points basis.

Under the terms of the partnership, first-time charter customers will receive four complimentary Privilege Club tier upgrades, including one Platinum and three Gold tiers. They can share these benefits with other individuals.

Qatar Executive’s fleet consists of 15 Gulfstream G650ERs and four G700s, as well as a pair of Bombardier Global 5000s and an Airbus ACJ319. In May, it was the first operator in the world to take delivery of the new G700 model in an event held at the airline’s headquarters at Hamad International Airport in Doha. It is due to receive six more of the type over the next 18 months.

To truly be a business tool, business jets must remain seamlessly connected to the world below them. Today’s connectivity solutions frequently fall short of delivering the truly global, consistent, and enterprise-grade connectivity needed to do business. But that is set to change thanks to Eutelsat OneWeb and their recently completed global constellation of low Earth orbit satellites.

Charter operator Opul Jets has agreed to install Starlink’s satellite-based connectivity service on its Dubai-based fleet of aircraft. The company, which operates from bases in the UK, India, and the UAE, announced the agreement with SpaceX subsidiary Starlink Aviation on Wednesday.

According to Starlink, its technology can deliver download speeds ranging from 40 to 220 Mbps and upload speeds of between 8 and 25 Mbps with a latency of just under 99 milliseconds. The equipment is installed during a maintenance check, with each aircraft receiving an aero terminal antenna, a power supply unit, and a pair of wireless access points.

Opul Jets already offers Starlink connectivity to passengers on its Bombardier Global Express XRS. The company’s fleet includes the Learjet 40 and 45 models, and it also has bases at London Biggin Hill Airport and at the Manx Jet Centre at Ronaldsway Airport on the Isle of Man.

Aircraft are operated under air operator certificates held by its partners UK-based Saxon Air and Av8Jet Charter in Malta. Opul Jets was launched earlier this year by its CEO, Harry Ackerman.

Charter and Go will showcase its AI-driven flight management system at the upcoming NBAA-BACE conference in Las Vegas. According to the company, the platform optimizes “dispatch, crew scheduling, fleet management, maintenance, and sales at a competitive price. The software also integrates safety management systems (SMS) and other crucial operational features, offering a seamless experience for both operators and their clients.”

“We listened to operators and built a system that addresses their day-to-day challenges. Air charter operators' decision to use Charter and Go speaks volumes about our ability to deliver the operational excellence they’re seeking. We’re thrilled to support them in becoming the most comprehensive air charter operators in the industry,” said Charter and Go co-founder and CEO Christian Huff.

““Charter and Go offers a robust and user-friendly solution for managing every facet of charter operations. Our partnership with air charter operators demonstrates our shared vision to push the boundaries of innovation and deliver superior service to clients,” said company v-p Demietrius Huff.

Electric aircraft are already permanently based at 14 UK airfields, according to the British Business and General Aviation Association (BBGA). On Monday, the group announced that another 36 airfields around the country are in the process of installing electric charging equipment to meet anticipated demand for aircraft with no direct carbon emissions from operations.

For now, Pipistrel’s Velis Electro two-seater is the only electric aircraft approved by the UK Civil Aviation Authority for passenger flights. The aircraft, which is manufactured by Textron eAviation’s Slovenia-based subsidiary, is increasingly in demand as a flight training platform.

The most recent addition to the UK fleet is a Velis Electro leased by Synergy Flight Training from Pipistrel’s UK distributor NeboAir. The aircraft is based at the London-area Fairoaks Airport and has been partly funded with support from aviation sustainability group 4Air, a sister company to business aircraft charter group Flexjet.

“The Pipistrel Velis generates emissions only during its construction, repair, and maintenance, [as well as] its eventual end-of-life disposal and from the electricity used for charging,” commented 4Air’s president, Kennedy Ricci. “Through our partnership with Synergy Flight Training, student pilots of the future—and qualified pilots too—will experience new forms of decarbonized flying which will become more commonplace over the next decade.”

Patterson Distributors Limited's “Eye in the Sky” cockpit video, audio, and flight data recorder has received supplemental type certificate (STC) approval from the FAA. This device is designed to enhance safety and performance through comprehensive flight data recording. The STC certification was granted through the FAA's international validation branch under a bilateral agreement with the New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority.

The Eye in the Sky system integrates a forward-facing HD camera, capturing a 160-degree view of the cockpit and flight data from the instrument panel, along with ambient noise, intercom, and radio transmissions. Additionally, the unit records GNSS data, including aircraft ground speed, altitude, heading, and position. Designed to fit various helicopter models, it offers operators an affordable and robust tool for reviewing pilot performance, addressing maintenance anomalies, and improving flight training.

Louisa Patterson, the device’s developer, remarked, “Eye in the Sky helps raise the overall aviation safety bar, close occurrences, answer intermittent engineering faults, improve training, and provide answers in the event of an accident.”

With a tamper-proof SD card storing up to 22 hours of data and a built-in backup battery, the Eye in the Sky is ready for immediate deployment.

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