FAA funds 19 BVLOS projects and sets Las Vegas procedures for NBAA-BACE

The FAA has awarded $12 million for 19 beyond-visual-line-of-sight drone research projects. For a charter desk, the nearer item in the same 6 October NBAA daily is the special air traffic procedure package for the Las Vegas area during NBAA-BACE, from 15 through 23 October.

The money runs through the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Broad Agency Announcement Program and funds 19 projects. The digest states the program total and the project count. It does not name the recipients or the research questions in the summary used here. Treat $12 million as the award pool, and wait for the FAA project list before attaching the money to a named operator or airport.

Beyond-visual-line-of-sight work sits on the unmanned side of the industry. The $12 million award does not change how a manned charter is sourced this week.

The FAA released special air traffic procedures for the Las Vegas area from 15 through 23 October to handle the NBAA-BACE traffic surge. Any arrival, departure, or tech stop in that window should be planned against the procedure, not against an ordinary Tuesday at the field.

A show-week flow is a scheduling constraint. It can move a proposed departure, a reposition, or a quick turn even when the aircraft and the crew are otherwise free. Ask the operator which procedure applies before the client is shown a firm time.

Four Corners Aviation is rebranding as Mente Aviation. The digest describes the company as a sister to Mente Group, established in 2021, and as a provider of management, charter, and corporate jet services.

A name change is a supplier-record task. Confirm which legal entity is quoting, and which brand the client will see on the proposal. Update the contact only after the operator confirms the path that should receive the next RFQ.

Three further items in the 6 October digest are separate from the BVLOS award and the Las Vegas procedures:

• IADA’s annual forecast points to strong demand, tight supply, and extended new-aircraft delivery backlogs.
• A jury sided with Aerosonic in a trade-secrets case involving Joby’s eVTOL work. Joby has asked the court to overturn that result, AIN reported via the digest.
• NBAA-BACE coverage plans include multiplatform reporting by content creators, including Xyla Foxlin. That is a media note.

Pin 15–23 October on any trip that touches Las Vegas during NBAA-BACE, and read the special procedure before promising a time. Record Mente Aviation against Four Corners records so the next quote goes to the name the operator is actually using. Keep the $12 million BVLOS figure as a research budget until a project list says otherwise.

This brief is an original rewrite of facts reported in the NBAA Daily email of 6 October 2026 and the outlets it cites, including the FAA, NBAA, IADA, and AIN. It is not a verbatim reproduction of those publications.