EASA certification directorate staff members flew the Leonardo AW609 civil tiltrotor in Cascina Costa di Samarate, Italy, on March 16 and 17 as part of its first round of familiarization activities for the aircraft program. These flights follow FAA pre-type inspection authorization (TIA) flights on February 22 in Philadelphia. Leonardo said both sets of flights constitute “an important step forward in the final stages of the certification process” and set “the right pace on the validation process, together with the FAA certification path.” Earlier this month, Leonardo reported that the AW609 civil tiltrotor had reached the “final stages of certification” as the FAA prepares to initiate formal TIA flight tests. Along with the test fleet, three customer AW609s remain in final assembly. However, under questioning, managing director Gian Piero Cutillo admitted that an order for four AW609s from an unnamed European customer, announced at last year’s Heli-Expo, was the largest contract it had received for the type. Company officials have declined to reveal details concerning the aircraft’s total order book, likely pricing, or precise timetable for certification. While Leonardo is noncommittal on estimating a certification date for the AW609, Leonardo emergency medical services specialist Sam Schaab said he expects it to occur “relatively quickly.” The company is marketing the aircraft for a variety of missions, including air ambulance applications.   Source AIN Online

Bombardier, continuing to meet financial objectives in its turnaround plan, has upped its goals for 2025, now targeting more than $9 billion in revenues by 2025 as it plans to deliver 150 aircraft annually by that time frame. The $9 billion marks an improvement from the $7.5 billion goal laid out in 2021, when Bombardier became a pure-play business aviation company, and the $6.9 billion brought in 2022. Increased deliveries would be a ramp-up from 120 in 2022 and the anticipated 138 in 2023. Along with revenues, Bombardier has set more aggressive profitability targets, and is anticipating an adjusted EBITDA of more than $1.625 billion, compared with the original goal of $1.5 billion. “In 2021, we laid the foundation for a stronger, more resilient, and predictable Bombardier by 2025. Halfway down the road, we can say we are delivering on that promise,” said Bombardier president and CEO Éric Martel. “All of Bombardier’s strategic priorities are on track or ahead of plan. We are therefore proud to announce today that we are confidently raising the bar.” Contributing to the improved results are returns on its long-term plans to expand its aftermarket revenues, and Bombardier executives said during an Investor Day on Thursday that they are well on their way to achieving a $2 billion annual contribution from that business by 2025, a 50 percent jump from 2020 and up from $1.5 billion in 2022. Propelling this has been a dramatic expansion of its aftermarket footprint that has included the opening of new or expanded centers in Miami, Melbourne, London, and Singapore, among other activities. Also contributing to the improved revenues is growth beginning in its certified preowned program and defense business. However, Martel noted that Bombardier expects those

Business aviation advocates are working with government leaders to help ease the transition in the implementation of the new EU passenger-entry programs—the Entry/Exit System (EES) and European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS). Carriers that fly passengers into the EU must register for EES and ETIAS to enable the verification of travel details for arrivals into the 27 countries that make up the Schengen Area. The programs apply to Part 135 and 125 operations. NBAA noted it is still unclear whether Part 91 operators must comply, pointing out that each state may have a different definition of “carrier.” While deadlines for both programs were delayed (requirements originally were scheduled to begin in September 2022), transitions to them are anticipated to begin this year. The EU is estimating mid-May for the transition to begin with EES, which will replace the manual stamping of passports with electronic records. While the transition will continue until February 2024, manual stamping of passports is anticipated to end by mid-August. ETIAS, an online pre-travel and pre-boarding system for visa-exempt third-country nationals, is targeted for implementation in November. NBAA is coordinating with the European Business Aviation Association and the Canadian Business Aviation Association to help facilitate a smooth implementation for the business aviation community of the programs that are managed and overseen by the European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security, and Justice (eu-LISA), said NBAA director of flight operations and regulations Brian Koester. The association recommends carriers that travel to Europe begin the registration process and warns that operators should not wait for additional guidance in hopes of being exempt from the requirements. “The responsible position is to register and be