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The FAA’s 48th annual General Aviation and Part 135 Activity Survey (GA Survey), reporting on calendar year 2025, is still underway, but time is running out to respond! The last day aircraft owners and operators can respond is Friday, Jul. 10, 2026. VAI highly encourages participation in the survey, whose data is used by governmental agencies and industry organizations to compute safety metrics, determine funding for infrastructure and service needs, and more.

The move, effective Jun. 29, establishes Honeywell Aerospace as an independent, publicly traded company in the aerospace and defense industry.

Reiser Simulation and Training and Varjo hosted an “Experience Day” Jun. 24 in Berg, Germany, showcasing high-fidelity extended-reality (XR) simulation for civil aviation, aerospace, defense, and training communities. The event featured expert talks and live demonstrations highlighting mixed reality’s role in closing gaps between evolving operational demands and traditional training capabilities.

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Airbus Helicopters Deutschland GmbH Model EC135 P1, EC135 P2, EC135 P2+, EC135 P3, EC135 T1, EC135 T2, EC135 T2+, EC135 T3, and EC635 T2+ helicopters. This proposed AD was prompted by a report of a separated tail-rotor blade (TRB) assembly due to a crack caused by intergranular corrosion. This proposed AD would require repetitively inspecting a certain TRB assembly for cracks and, depending on the results, removing any cracked TRB assembly from service and replacing an affected part as terminating action for the repetitive inspections. This proposed AD would also prohibit installing a certain TRB assembly on any helicopter unless certain requirements are met. Comments on this notice of proposed rulemaking are due by Aug. 13.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Airbus Helicopters Model H160-B helicopters. This AD was prompted by a discovery during a maintenance operation that several self-locking nuts of the window jettisoning system could be loosened by hand due to a nonconformity in certain cable kits. This AD requires modifying each affected window into a serviceable window and prohibits installing an affected window or an affected door on any helicopter. The AD is effective Aug. 3.

(POWER UP magazine) – VAI’s 2026–27 chairperson, who starts his one-year term today, brings “let’s go” energy to serving all of vertical aviation.

We are now accepting nominations for our annual awards program. You need not be a VAI member to nominate your peers, mentors, and others for exceptional service to the vertical aviation community. The deadline for submissions is Aug. 31, 2026.

(HeliOps magazine) – HeliOps sits down with VAI President and CEO François Lassale to chat about the association’s evolution and where the organization is headed not just for the industry in North America but around the world.

This FAA airworthiness directive (AD) supersedes AD 2019-09-03 and AD 2021-05-15 for certain Airbus Models AS 332C, AS 332C1, AS 332L, and AS 332L1 helicopters. Those ADs concerned the cabin lateral sliding plug doors. This AD requires modifying the release system of each cabin lateral sliding plug door or modifying the design of the jettison system of each cabin lateral sliding plug door as a terminating action for the repetitive inspections. This AD is effective Aug. 3.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Airbus Helicopters Models AS350 B, AS350 BA, AS350 B1, AS350 B2, AS350 B3, and AS350 D helicopters. This AD, prompted by a report of a nonconforming cargo hook, requires inspecting the gap between the filler and the side plates of the affected cargo hook and, depending on the results, replacing the cargo hook. This AD, effective Aug. 3, also prohibits installing an affected cargo hook on any helicopter.