Textron Aviation delivered 42 business jets in the third quarter, one more than the same period in 2024, while commercial turboprop deliveries surged to 39 aircraft, up from 25 a year ago. The strong performance contributed to a 10% revenue increase for the segment, to $1.5 billion.

“Overall, third-quarter revenue was up 5% for [parent company] Textron, with higher revenues at [Textron] Aviation, Bell, and Textron Systems,” Textron Inc. chairman and CEO Scott Donnelly said this morning during the company’s third-quarter earnings call. Donnelly will be succeeded by Lisa Atherton, currently president and CEO of Bell, effective Jan. 4, 2026. Donnelly will then transition to executive chairman.

Textron Aviation handed over eight Citation CJ3+s, nine CJ4 Gen2s, four XLS Gen2s, 11 Latitudes, and five Longitudes in the quarter. The M2 Gen2 accounted for five deliveries during the period, down from eight in last year’s third quarter. On the turboprop side, it delivered 20 Caravans (twice as many YOY), four SkyCouriers, 15 King Airs, and five T-6 trainers. The commercial turboprop total of 39 units marked a 56% increase from the 25 delivered in the third quarter last year.

In the first nine months, Textron Aviation delivered 122 jets and 63 commercial turboprops. This compares with 119 jets and 44 commercial turboprops a year ago.

Honeywell Aerospace recently launched its Alternative Navigation Architecture (HANA) software solution, designed to ensure resilient navigation in environments where satellite signals may be spoofed, jammed, or inaccessible. Although the group has been developing methods to support non-GPS navigation for around a decade, the latest technology responds to a growing threat to aviation safety and security.

“What we’re seeing in terms of the kind of conflict and the war going on in Eastern Europe is the need for alternate navigation,” explained Mike Vallillo, Honeywell Aerospace’s international v-p of defense and space, during a recent media visit to the company’s research and technology center at Brno in the Czech Republic.

HANA is designed to provide precise information on the aircraft’s position, velocity, and orientation when global navigation satellite system (GNSS) signals are unavailable. According to Matt Picchetti, v-p of navigation and sensors, HANA applies to crewed and uncrewed aircraft, as well as military surface vehicles, and can run on the operator’s current computing platform, or one provided by Honeywell.

The initial iteration of the system includes vision-aided navigation, using live camera feeds to match ground imagery with map databases. Honeywell also aims to integrate magnetic anomaly and low-earth-orbit satellite solutions into the layered-architecture system next year.

Crew “expectation bias and distraction” led to a Hawker 850XP taking off without a clearance and colliding with a landing Cessna Citation Mustang on an intersecting runway at Houston Hobby Airport (KHOU) on Oct. 24, 2023, according to the NTSB final report. The Mustang, on landing rollout, was substantially damaged when, on lift off, the Hawker’s left wingtip struck the left side of the Citation’s tail cone. The Hawker, with minor damage, returned to land. Daylight VMC prevailed and there were no injuries to occupants of either twinjet.

Some 4.5 minutes before the collision on a nine-mile final, Mustang N510HM was cleared to land on Runway 13. Just prior to the accident, Hawker N269AA was cleared to “line up and wait” (LUAW) on Runway 22. The pilot monitoring correctly read back the clearance, but both pilots told accident investigators that they also recalled hearing a subsequent clearance for takeoff. However, a review of ATC recordings revealed that there was no takeoff clearance issued.

The NTSB determined this discrepancy was likely due to the pilots’ expectation bias, a cognitive phenomenon where individuals perceive what they expect to hear or see and act accordingly. But the Safety Board also concluded that the Hawker pilots may have been distracted initially by instrumentation issues at the time of the LUAW clearance and then warning alarms on the takeoff roll.

U.S. corporations are increasingly focusing on how their aircraft can help them run their businesses, new research commissioned by Airbus Corporate Jets found. Researchers surveyed U.S. companies with annual revenues of more than $500 million, with results revealing that 83% have increased both domestic and intercontinental business travel.

In making purchase decisions, 67% cited new U.S. tax incentives, including bonus depreciation, as a reason for purchasing aircraft, while 63% emphasized focus on operational costs, and 59% on newer/better/more efficient models. Also, 51% said they are looking to upgrade to models that can make greater use of sustainable fuel, and 41% cited a need for bigger aircraft.

“This research reinforces the importance U.S. companies are placing on efficiency, sustainability, and productivity from business aviation,” said Airbus Corporate Jets president Chadi Saade.

The study found a growing link between business aviation and sustainability, with nine in 10 firms interviewed indicating that they were investing more in fleet management technology to optimize routes and reduce fuel burn. Also, 90% of charter users are prioritizing newer, more efficient aircraft.

Researchers also surveyed business aviation financiers and brokers, finding that nine in 10 expect the market to grow over the next two years, with 11% predicting strong growth. Some 77% believe business aviation financing access will increase in the next three years, providing more options for fleet upgrades.

Hydrographics are transforming aircraft interiors with stunning woodgrain, modern carbon fiber, or bold custom designs. This cost-effective, durable process wraps cabinetry, tables, and more in seamless finishes that rival veneers, at lower cost and shorter downtime. Refresh your jet or brand a fleet with executive sophistication and personal style.

Embraer’s Executive Jets division is on track to meet its projected delivery forecast of 145 to 155 aircraft this year, the Brazilian OEM announced this week. In the first nine months, the OEM delivered 102 executive jets—nine Phenom 100EX and 49 Phenom 300E light jets, along with 22 midsize Praetor 500s and 22 super-midsize Praetor 600s. Embraer also reached a milestone in the quarter with the delivery of its 2,000th business jet—a Praetor 500—to a corporate flight department.

Compared to the first nine months of 2024, Embraer is 16 aircraft ahead of its delivery pace. Over the past five years, its executive jet division averaged 45% of its deliveries in the fourth quarter, leading the company to institute a production-leveling initiative to better spread work throughout the year.

“With our strong firm backlog and aircraft deliveries tracking ahead of historical averages, we are well-positioned for the final quarter of 2025,” Embraer Executive Jets president and CEO Michael Amalfitano told AIN. “And the Q3 delivery of our 2,000th business jet marks a historic milestone and underscores the trust our loyal customers place in Embraer’s product innovation and engineering excellence. As we drive to close another successful year, we anticipate further tangible results from our production leveling initiative, reinforcing our growth commitment to sustained excellence and operational efficiency.”

Florida-based VIP Completions has been awarded a maintenance implementation procedure (MIP) designation, a bilateral agreement between the FAA and Transport Canada Civil Aviation that allows it to work on aircraft registered in either country. The MIP authorization simplifies approvals, reduces duplicate paperwork, and facilitates cross-border operations, according to VIP Completions.

While most of the company’s completion projects involve U.S.-based aircraft, the MIP will expand VIP’s capabilities to service and refurbish Canadian aircraft at its Fort Lauderdale headquarters. This opens up the facility to the more than 600 Canadian business aircraft, making it particularly attractive to operators of C-registered aircraft that visit South Florida for business or personal travel, winter operations, and/or maintenance.

“Many C-reg aircraft routinely visit South Florida,” said VIP Completions president Ben Shirazi. “Now we can seamlessly support these aircraft at our client’s destination of choice.”

To demonstrate this, Shirazi’s company just unveiled its first serialized supplemental type certificate completion project for a Canadian customer: a refurbished, four-year-old Bombardier Global 5500. “Together with our client, we crafted a refined, contemporary interior, featuring soft tones, elegant textures, and bespoke materials from the world’s most prestigious designers,” explained Shirazi. “The result is a cabin that perfectly embodies artistry, precision, and individuality. We now welcome Canadian aircraft owners to experience the same meticulous craftsmanship and personalized service that have defined our work for more than a decade."

New Delhi-based SRC Aviation, which will celebrate 50 years of operations next year, has been granted IBAC’s International Standard for Business Aircraft Handling (IS-BAH) Stage 3 registration. SRC specializes in handling corporate, private, and nonscheduled flights across South and Central Asia. It offers end-to-end flight management, including permits, ground handling, dispatch, customs, and charters.

SRC Aviation is India’s only IS-BAH Stage 3-registered operator and is among around 10% of FBOs/ground handlers globally to hold the top safety standard. Despite perceptions, managing director Bobby Chadha asserts that India’s services exceed global benchmarks. SRC received its latest registration in just five days—far quicker than the global norm—thanks to rigorous teamwork and deep integration of safety protocols “to ensure we do not become complacent.”

For a sector poised for growth, IS-BAH Stage 3 unlocks market differentiation: “Inquiries have already gone up by 25%,” noted SRC COO Harminder Singh. SRC clients include heads of state and Fortune 500 companies. An airport source told AIN that SRC recently handled a Boeing 737 flown in by Elon Musk and his team.

Earlier this year, SRC became the first international company to enter Uzbekistan after the country’s open skies and airport privatization initiative, forming a joint venture with domestic luxury company Begim for ground handling. Training of locals has started at Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara, and Urgench airports.

Fuel suppliers have reported that 0.6% of all aircraft fuel dispensed at European Union (EU) airports in 2024 was sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). EASA released this data yesterday as its baseline for SAF mandate targets as part of its first ReFuelEU Aviation Annual Technical Report.

For 2025, there is a mandatory target for 2% of all fuel to be SAF. According to the report, the SAF purchased, supplied, and used in the EU for all aircraft operators last year amounted to 193 kilotonnes, or 63.7 million gallons, which reduced carbon emissions by 714 kilotonnes. According to the ICAO CO2 calculator, that is equivalent to around 10,000 flights between Madrid and Paris.

According to EASA’s production capacity assessments, the EU is on track to meet the 6% SAF blending target in 2030. Synthetic fuels were not part of the reported SAF mix in 2024.

The report showed that the average price paid for SAF in the EU last year was €2,085 per tonne—the equivalent of about $6.91 per gallon. This was almost three times the equivalent €734-per-tonne price for jet-A.

The 2024 report was based on input from 67% of aviation fuel suppliers and 74% of aircraft operators covered by RefuelEU regulations. EASA said it will need to achieve full reporting this year to accurately assess rates of compliance with the SAF mandate.

PHI Air Medical has installed a Loft Dynamics virtual reality (VR) helicopter flight simulator at its Mesa, Arizona training base. The simulator replicates the Airbus Helicopters H125 (AStar) and features a six-degrees-of-freedom motion base and a fully replicated cockpit with avionics and tactile controls.

Loft’s H125 VR simulator is qualified by the FAA as a level 7 flight training device and by EASA as level 3, allowing training credit for certain proficiency and recurrency activities. Using a VR headset eliminates the need for an expensive visual display system.

“We fly into the unknown every day—remote crash sites, busy city centers, adverse weather, unfamiliar terrain—and we do it in service of patients who don’t have time to wait,” said Duke Baker, director of aviation operations at PHI Air Medical. “With this technology, we can safely give our pilots any mission at any time, right at our home base, and rehearse until the maneuvers become instinctive, ingrained in muscle memory and reflex. And it’s not just a win for us, it’s a signal to the entire industry of what’s now possible. This technology is powerful.”

Plans call for PHI Air Medical to use the Loft simulator for initial and recurrent pilot qualifications for Part 135 operations and for emergency maneuvers and scenario-based air medical training.

AIN’s senior-level Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit (CALS) West, our 10th CALS event, is set for January 12 to 14 in Scottsdale, Arizona. Attendees will have the opportunity to discuss the hot topics, strategies, and solutions in business aviation. The summit is attendee-centric, serving as an educational and professional networking platform that connects corporate aviation leaders with peers, industry experts, and solution providers in a relaxed and informal environment. We invite U.S.-based Directors of Aviation and flight department leaders to apply to attend this all-expenses-paid event as our guests. There are only 50 spots available, so apply today.