The Scissortail Brief | Oct 19, 2026
Good morning from The Conrad in Las Vegas… This week, NBAA-BACE opens here in Las Vegas, and Scissortail is on the scene. FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford kicks off the show's regulators panel. Henriksen Jet Centers opens leasing on a 28,000-square-foot hangar at Austin Executive. Textron debuts the Citation CJ3 Gen2. PlaneSense picks Gogo Galileo for its Pilatus fleet. Bombardier opens a maintenance learning center in Wichita. Crude oil climbs to near $110 a barrel. And a warm, dry week sets up across most of Texas.
Texas
Henriksen Jet Centers Opens Leasing on 28,000-Square-Foot Hangar at Austin Executive
Henriksen Jet Centers announced Oct. 13 that leasing is open on a newly built corporate hangar at Austin Executive Airport (KEDC), a reliever airport about 20 minutes from downtown Austin. The hangar covers 28,000 square feet and includes 2,500 square feet of office and shop space.
Andrew Perry, A.A.E., executive director of Henriksen Jet Centers, made the announcement. The company described the hangar as added capacity for aircraft owners, operators and aviation businesses looking to establish or expand in the Austin area. Airport Manager Reed Brickey is handling leasing inquiries and tours. Inquiries can go to Henriksen Jet Center at 512-247-7678 or csr@austinexecutiveairport.com.
Around North America
NBAA-BACE Opens Tuesday in Las Vegas
The NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition runs Oct. 20 to 22 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, with the static aircraft display at Henderson Executive Airport (KHND) on Oct. 20 and 21. Indoor exhibits are open Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Thursday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Scissortail Aviation Advisors is on the scene.
NBAA projected more than 17,000 attendees and about 760 exhibitors. Fifteen aircraft manufacturers were confirmed for the display: Aviat, Boeing Business Jets, Bombardier, Cirrus, Daher, Dassault, Epic, Gulfstream, Honda Aircraft, Piaggio Aero, Pilatus, Piper, Robinson Helicopter, SyberJet and Textron Aviation.
The opening session, "The Launch," starts at 9 a.m. Tuesday on the new Horizon Stage, hosted by pilot Stephanie Goetz. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman is scheduled for a conversation with Charlie Precourt, an NBAA board member and former space shuttle commander. Steven F. Udvar-Hazy receives the 2026 Meritorious Service to Aviation Award. NBAA also recognizes operators with 50, 60 and 75 years of accident-free flying, and eight people receive the Dr. Tony Kern Professionalism in Aviation Award.
At 3 p.m. Tuesday, Bedford joins NBAA Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Kristie Greco Johnson for the expanded "Meet the Regulators" session. NBAA said expected topics include air traffic control modernization, certification and international operations.
Other scheduled events include a Pilot Talk with John Travolta at 3 p.m. Tuesday at Bombardier's static display, where the company is showing the Global 8000, Global 6500 and Challenger 3500. Textron Aviation is debuting the Citation CJ3 Gen2, with the Ascend, Latitude and Longitude also on the ramp. NBAA's Military Connect program is Oct. 21. Corporate Angel Network holds its Fund an Angel event Oct. 21 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Fontainebleau Las Vegas, and AIN reported the group expected nearly 500 attendees.
NBAA also announced Doug Carr as the recipient of its Pillar of the Association Award, and said 19 students will receive scholarships at the show.
Two FAA Issues Remain Open Ahead of Regulators Panel
Two FAA actions drew industry attention ahead of the Oct. 20 session, GlobalAir reported Oct. 15.
On Sept. 24, the FAA proposed raising the altitudes at which pilots must wear oxygen masks. For Part 135 two-pilot operations, the threshold would move from 35,000 feet to FL410. For single-pilot operations, it would move from 25,000 feet to FL350. Under the proposal, Part 91 airplanes with quick-donning masks would no longer face the FL410 full-time requirement. Comments are due Nov. 23.
On Sept. 28, the FAA announced it would stop issuing and would rescind existing single-pilot exemptions for certain Cessna Citation models certificated for two pilots. The FAA cited safety concerns, accident data and widespread noncompliance. NBAA and Citation Jet Pilots asked the FAA in a Sept. 29 letter for a delay of at least 90 days and for an industry working group. AVweb reported no FAA response as of Oct. 1.
PlaneSense Selects Gogo Galileo for Pilatus Fleet
PlaneSense chose Gogo Galileo, a low-Earth-orbit satellite communications system, for its entire fleet of Pilatus PC-12 and PC-24 aircraft, AIN reported Oct. 15. The fractional operator targeted completion by the end of 2027.
Bombardier Opens North American Maintenance Learning Center in Wichita
Bombardier inaugurated its North American Learning Center in Wichita, Kansas, on Oct. 15 at a ceremony attended by Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, Lt. Gov. David Toland, Bombardier leaders and industry stakeholders. The company described the center as its first dedicated in-house skills development center for newly hired aircraft technicians and mechanics from across the U.S. The technicians trained there will support customers across Bombardier's American service network. AIN reported the center includes a Global 5000 fuselage for hands-on training.
The center is part of an investment of about $50 million in the Wichita site. The package also covers a recently expanded wheel and tire shop, which pairs updated equipment with advanced employee training to grow the company's component repair and overhaul work, and what Bombardier called future capabilities. The company did not break down the $50 million by project, and it did not release course details or class capacity.
Paul Sislian, Bombardier's executive vice president of aircraft sales and aftermarket services, attended the opening. Kelly said Bombardier employs about 1,500 people in Kansas. Wichita also houses Bombardier's U.S. headquarters and Bombardier Defense. Bombardier employs about 3,500 people in the U.S., operates ten service and manufacturing facilities and spends $2.5 billion a year with American suppliers. The company also has a service center under development in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Media contact: Stephanie Faraggi, Bombardier, 514-513-7830, stephanie.faraggi@aero.bombardier.com.
Textron Aviation Launches Youth Apprenticeship Programs in Kansas
Textron Aviation announced Sept. 30 that it launched what it called the first state-registered aviation youth apprenticeship program in Kansas, registered through the Kansas Office of Apprenticeships. Students can start at age 16 and complete the program while finishing high school. The first cohorts began this fall.
The program has three tracks: airframe and powerplant maintenance and avionics, both run with WSU Tech in Wichita, and engine buildup, run with Tri County Tech of Bartlesville, Oklahoma, with training in Independence, Kansas. Each combines classroom instruction with paid, structured on-the-job training alongside Textron Aviation employees, and lasts up to three years depending on the track. Apprentices earn a credential from the Kansas Office of Apprenticeships, and those on the airframe and powerplant track also earn their A&P certificate. The release did not give wage amounts or cohort sizes.
Participating schools include Wichita Public Schools, Haysville Public Schools, Kapaun Mt. Carmel Catholic High School and Dewey High School in Oklahoma. Maggie Topping, Textron Aviation's senior vice president of human resources and communications, said the program is about opening the door earlier. Textron has run other state-registered apprenticeships in maintenance, avionics, paint, CNC machining and tooling since 2023.
Prospective applicants can send questions to Textron Aviation's careers team at apprenticeship@txtav.com. Textron lists open apprenticeship roles at txtav.com/careers/search?keyword=apprentice and program information at txtav.com/careers/apprenticeships. Textron's apprenticeship page said openings are rotational and not posted year-round.
Around the World
Ondas Missile Protection System Certified for Global 7500
Ondas announced Oct. 13 that the European Union Aviation Safety Agency certified its Airborne Missile Protection System, developed by Ondas subsidiary BIRD Aerosystems, on the Bombardier Global 7500. The system uses directional infrared countermeasures, including a belly-mounted turret that emits a laser to jam infrared-guided missiles. The release did not name a customer.
Textron Aviation Opens Service Center in Melbourne
Textron Aviation held a ribbon-cutting for its Melbourne Service Center at Essendon Fields Airport during its 2026 Asia-Pacific Customer Conference, Aviation Week reported Oct. 13. The center has supported customers since March.
EBAA France Warns on Charter Tax
The French arm of the European Business Aviation Association warned that per-passenger tax rates on private charter flights are much higher than those on airline passengers, AIN reported Oct. 15. The group said the taxes could drive charter operators out of business.
CBAA Partners With AvPosts
The Canadian Business Aviation Association became the exclusive agent for AvPosts, a Canadian aviation recruitment platform, on Oct. 16. Job seekers and employers use the platform free of charge.
Weather and Fuel
Texas Forecast, Oct. 19 to 25
Most of Texas was forecast to be sunny and warm through the week, with highs climbing from the upper 70s Monday to the upper 80s by Thursday. The National Weather Service forecast the best rain chances near the coast early in the week and in West Texas late in the week.
North Texas (NWS Fort Worth): At Dallas Love Field, highs were forecast at 77 Monday, 81 Tuesday and 84 Wednesday, rising to 87 to 88 Thursday through Saturday. Lows were forecast from 56 to 66. The forecast showed no rain through Sunday.
Central Texas (NWS Austin/San Antonio): Austin highs were forecast at 80 Monday, rising to 88 Thursday through Saturday, with lows in the upper 50s to mid 60s. San Antonio highs were forecast from 79 Monday to 88 Friday and Saturday, with a 20% chance of showers Sunday.
Southeast Texas (NWS Houston/Galveston): Highs were forecast in the upper 70s to mid 80s Monday and Tuesday, then the mid to upper 80s Thursday through the weekend. Rain chances were 10% to 30% off the Brazoria and Matagorda coasts Monday and 20% to 40% near the coast Tuesday, mainly offshore. Chances were 15% to 30% Wednesday, fading by afternoon. Thursday through the weekend was forecast dry. Easterly winds of 10 to 20 knots and seas of 3 to 5 feet were forecast over the Gulf through midweek.
West Texas (NWS Midland/Odessa and Lubbock): Midland highs were forecast from 77 Monday to 83 Wednesday and Thursday, with showers possible from Friday night through Sunday. Lubbock highs were forecast from 72 to 79 through Thursday, with a 20% chance of showers Friday afternoon, 30% Saturday and 40% Sunday.
Forecasts were issued Oct. 19, except Houston/Galveston, issued at 12:11 a.m. Oct. 19.
National Forecast, Oct. 19 to 25
A low pressure system off the Mid-Atlantic coast was forecast to strengthen off North Carolina early in the week and move north, exiting by Thursday. The Weather Prediction Center expected moderate coastal flooding and beach erosion from southern New Jersey through North Carolina, with wind gusts above 45 mph across the Outer Banks and Virginia Tidewater. Scattered rain was forecast along the Florida east coast through Tuesday, with a wet onshore flow possible in South Florida later in the week.
On the West Coast, a low was forecast to bring rain to Northern California on Monday and to Central and Southern California Monday night into Tuesday. A cutoff low was forecast to form off the coast by midweek and move into California and the Southwest later in the week, with widespread rain and thunderstorms across the West, Great Basin and Rockies. The center placed parts of the Four Corners in a Slight Risk for excessive rainfall, with heavy rain forecast in southwestern Colorado's San Juan Mountains on Thursday. The Plains were forecast to see showers and thunderstorms by the weekend as that system moved east, with timing uncertain. An upper-level ridge was forecast to keep temperatures above average across the central U.S. through the weekend.
The National Hurricane Center was issuing advisories on Tropical Storm Trudy, a couple hundred miles off west-central Mexico, as of Oct. 19. The center gave a 50% chance that a trough south of Guatemala would become a tropical depression within 48 hours. In the Atlantic, the center gave a 40% chance over seven days that a non-tropical low off the Southeast coast would take on subtropical characteristics. No Atlantic storms were active.
Fuel
GlobalAir reported national average prices on Oct. 18 of $8.41 per gallon for Jet-A, $7.82 for 100LL and $10.59 for SAF, across 3,201 reporting FBOs. The Central region averaged $7.71 for Jet-A and $7.18 for 100LL. Alaska averaged $9.58 for Jet-A and $11.42 for 100LL.
AirNav listed national averages on Oct. 18 of $7.76 per gallon for Jet A, across 2,596 FBOs, and $7.46 for 100LL, across 3,475 FBOs.
West Texas Intermediate settled at $101.41 per barrel Friday, up 10.4% for the week, and Brent settled at $109.86, up 4.9%, according to EnergyNow. Brent touched $110, its highest level since May. Iranian attacks have reduced crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz, and a Ukrainian strike damaged the Ryazan refinery in Russia. U.S. commercial crude inventories fell 8.6 million barrels to 415.6 million in the week ended Oct. 9. The International Energy Agency's governing board agreed Oct. 15 to accelerate roughly 100 million barrels of emergency stock releases.
That's The Brief
The Week in One Sentence: NBAA-BACE opens Tuesday in Las Vegas with FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford at the regulators panel and two open FAA issues, Henriksen Jet Centers opened leasing on a 28,000-square-foot hangar at Austin Executive, Textron debuts the Citation CJ3 Gen2, and Jet-A averaged $8.41 nationally as Brent crude settled at $109.86.
About Our Sources
Texas hangar and airport news came from company announcements and GlobalAir. Convention details came from NBAA, event organizers and Aviation International News. Regulatory items came from the FAA, as reported by GlobalAir and AVweb. Corporate and international news came from company releases, Aviation International News, Aviation Week and Aerotelegraph. Weather forecasts came from the National Weather Service forecast offices in Fort Worth, Austin/San Antonio, Houston/Galveston, Midland/Odessa and Lubbock, the Weather Prediction Center and the National Hurricane Center. Fuel prices came from GlobalAir and AirNav, and crude oil prices came from EnergyNow. Items that could not be confirmed against a primary or published source were left out.
