By Garth Calitz The US Army wants an aircraft that can fly twice as fast and twice as far as the helicopters it is intended to supplement and partially replace. Bell Textron is building it. The Pentagon is funding it. And the press releases are, predictably, full of encouraging developments. The MV-75 Cheyenne II is being developed to transform the way the US Army moves troops, evacuates casualties and conducts long-range assault operations. It promises to combine the vertica

Bell Textron has marked the start of production of the first AH-1Z Viper attack helicopter destined for Nigeria, bringing the West African country a step closer to adding a modern dedicated attack helicopter to its military inventory. The milestone was commemorated on 16 September 2026 at Bell’s Amarillo Assembly Centre in Texas, where a Nigerian delegation toured the production facility and participated in a beam-signing ceremony on the aircraft’s frame. The event marks the

By Garth Calitz Airbus Helicopters and Denel Aerospace have used AAD 2026 to formalise a partnership aimed at strengthening South Africa’s ability to support and sustain the South African Air Force’s helicopter fleet. The two companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at AAD 2026, establishing a long-term framework for industrial cooperation that could see greater maintenance, engineering and technical capability anchored in South Africa. At its core, the agreement

By Garth Calitz In less than a week, the skies over Pretoria will once again become considerably busier as aircraft, defence systems, aerospace companies and thousands of aviation enthusiasts converge on Air Force Base Waterkloof for Africa Aerospace and Defence 2026. The 13th edition of AAD runs from 16 to 20 September, with three days dedicated to the trade exhibition before the gates open to the general public for the two-day air show on 19 and 20 September. For five days,

The United States Air Force has taken another significant step in the modernisation of its nuclear deterrence forces with the MH-139A Grey Wolf officially achieving Initial Operational Capability (IOC) on August 10. The milestone marks the beginning of the end for one of the most enduring aircraft in US military aviation, the Vietnam-era UH-1N Huey, which has spent more than five decades performing the decidedly unglamorous but critically important job of protecting America's

By Garth Calitz Long before the lights go out and 22 Formula 1 cars charge towards Turn One, an enormous aviation and logistics operation has already been underway for days. Cargo aircraft, helicopters, airports, trucks, medical crews and airspace managers all play their part in getting Formula 1 from one circuit to the next. For Formula 1 fans, the Grand Prix weekend appears to begin when the teams roll out of their garages on Friday morning. The reality is rather different.

The US Army is preparing to modernise its rotary-wing pilot training pipeline, and the aircraft selected to play a central role is perhaps not the helicopter many observers would have expected. Robinson Helicopter Company’s R66 has been selected as the training platform proposed by M1 Support Services (M1), following a four-phase evaluation under the US Army’s Flight School Next (FSN) initiative. The Army has announced its intent to award the Flight School Next contract to M1

Few aircraft have changed the way people move, work and respond to emergencies quite like the helicopter. From battlefields and remote agricultural fields to offshore oil platforms, city police departments and rescue operations, rotorcraft have become an indispensable part of modern aviation. Few manufacturers have been as closely associated with that evolution as Bell. Over the decades, Bell aircraft have been involved in some of the most significant developments in vertical

When aviation expertise and emergency medicine come together, the result is far more than a business partnership; it becomes a vital link in South Africa's emergency response capability. The long-standing collaboration between the National Airways Corporation (NAC) and Netcare 911 continues to demonstrate how world-class aviation support can make a critical difference when every second counts. For many years, NAC has provided the aviation backbone that enables Netcare 911 to

Bell has reached another significant production milestone, announcing the delivery of the 700th Bell 505 helicopter during the 2026 Farnborough International Airshow. The landmark aircraft has been delivered to a private VIP operator, underscoring the Bell 505's growing popularity in the executive and corporate aviation market. The achievement comes less than a decade after the Bell 505 entered service in 2017, highlighting the strong global demand for the light single-engine