Bombardier’s EcoJet Phase 2 technology demonstrator has now flown 10 times and is generating large amounts of data as part of efforts to develop technologies that could reduce emissions of a Global 6000-sized business jet by 50 percent. The blended-wing-body (BWB) craft—which has roughly 16 percent of the wing span of a Global 6000—is flying from an undisclosed North American location.

The 18-foot-wingspan air vehicle was revealed at EBACE in May, having made its first flight in late 2022. It is the latest test vehicle of a research program that began 15 years ago and initially resulted in an eight-foot-wingspan air vehicle that represented a notional 7 percent scale model of a potential BWB business jet configuration.

Daher CEO Didier Kayat reported on Monday at NBAA-BACE that the EcoPulse distributed propulsion technology demonstrator will fly for the first time on electric power “within the next two weeks or so.” Kayat has committed Daher to launching a hybrid-powered aircraft by 2027, with the specification expected to be defined next year.

The EcoPulse demo aircraft, which uses the Daher TBM 900 as its platform, has been flying with inactive wing-mounted electric thrusters installed since earlier this year, following baseline trials last year with just the PT6 turboprop.

To business, philanthropic, and tennis superstars Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi, business aviation is essential to all that they do. Kicking off the NBAA-BACE 2023 yesterday morning, Graf—who has notched 22 Grand Slam singles titles and 107 titles overall—told the audience of the opening day keynote session, “Being in airplanes was something I’ve always loved. We've grown up in airplanes and that's how I kind of see it with our sport. We travel around the world.”

Joining Graf on stage, her husband Agassi added that business aviation provides more control over their time and said “controlling all the things you can…[is] a big part of us being the best of ourselves.”

The electric aviation revolution is upon us, and it could have a significant impact on the business aviation industry. During an NBAA-BACE Newsmakers luncheon yesterday, a group of panelists from companies developing various types of electric aircraft discussed how they see the new technology fitting into today’s business aviation ecosystem.

While new electric aircraft have the potential to replace some existing airplanes, they also open up new possibilities that will complement the current market, the panelists agreed.

The business aviation industry has done a good job in signaling its receptivity for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), according to Kennedy Ricci, president of industry sustainability solutions provider 4Air.

“It speaks well to the initial interest of people out there that we’ve been able to meet what is currently available for supply,” he told AIN at NBAA-BACE 2023. “We’ve seen the demand catch up to supply availability, so we’re waiting for some of the plant expansions to be completed and for some of the new producers to start.”

Airbus Corporate Jets introduced its latest offering, the ACJ TwoTwenty, at this year's NBAA-BACE, marking its debut in North America. This "extra-large" business jet has an intercontinental range of 5,650 nm or more than 12 flight hours.

“The airplane can fly to three continents—Europe, South America, and Africa—from Las Vegas,” Sean McGeough, head of Airbus Corporate Jets North America, told AIN. The airframer found that just 1 percent of ultra-long-range travelers in the U.S. exceed the range of 5,600 nm, and most operate primarily within North America.

AIN Media Group is partnering with the International Aircraft Dealers Association (IADA) to bring IADA’s AircraftExchange business aircraft search portal to AIN’s global audience. AIN president Ruben Kempeneer and IADA executive director Wayne Starling announced the partnership on Wednesday at NBAA-BACE.

The partnership will give AIN’s audience access to an “Aircraft for Sale” tab on the AINonline homepage. Clicking the tab will send potential aircraft buyers to a search page from which users can access a listing of exclusive aircraft models validated by IADA-accredited dealers’ listings on AircraftExchange.

Satcom Direct has unveiled an expanded range of service plans for Viasat’s JetConneX inflight broadband service, SD said Monday at NBAA-BACE. Viasat will make the new plans available exclusively to Satcom Direct operators equipping their aircraft with the SD Plane Simple Ka-band tail mount terminal.

The option includes the first “power-by-the-hour” option for JetConneX, enabling business jet operators to pay an hourly rate for in-flight connectivity. SD said these service plans offer streamlined global connectivity for more aircraft owners around the world.