Textron Aviation is seeing a pickup in orders for light turboprops and jets from private buyers, but demand from corporations for larger business jets has yet to show signs of recovery, parent company Textron told analysts on July 30.

Gulfstream Aerospace continued to struggle with travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic in the second quarter of 2020, but managed to deliver 32 business jets compared to 31 a year ago.

The FAA will not extend a three-year partnership initiative with industry and state and local governments that helped launch the first commercial drone delivery operations in the U.S.

Among the few upsides of the COVID-19 pandemic has been the increased interest in business aviation from people who have not previously flown privately. But this emerging new market has not gone unnoticed by criminals eager to exploit it. 

Business aviation is poised to enjoy the best of times post-COVID-19, as the sector welcomes unprecedented numbers of new customers seeking the safety and convenience that private air travel offers, says Kenny Dichter, founder and CEO of Wheels Up.

Embraer has restructured its bizjet portfolio, and will no longer be producing Legacy 650 or Lineage 1000 aircraft.

NetJets has announced plans to recall all pilots and cabin crews furloughed in April from its NetJets Europe subsidiary, and has revised plans announced at the same time for the early retirement of a swathe of its European-based fleet. 

Chris Moore is president of business aviation for Satcom Direct, based in Melbourne, Florida. Moore joined Satcom in 2012 as chief commercial officer and was promoted to his current position as president in March 2019.