✈️ The VIP Seat Weekly

Your business aviation hot takes, served fresh

This week: NYPD aviation unit under FBI investigation for fraud, New York Times gets private jet facts totally wrong, Pilatus suspends US deliveries over 39% Swiss tariffs, and women pilots may have better situational awareness.

Season 2, Episode 11 | August 12th, 2025 | Episode Companion

🛫 The Runway Report

The top 5 stories from this week's podcast that are moving the needle in bizav

1️⃣ NYPD Aviation Unit Corruption Scandal Unfolds

The Scoop: The NYPD's aviation unit is under FBI investigation for fraudulent overtime payments, with officers allegedly receiving 20 fake overtime hours monthly. Lieutenant LaKesha Smith's pay jumped from $122K to $185K plus $40K in raises. The FAA is also investigating unreported aircraft damage and off-the-books flights.

Our Take: When government officials start retiring early en masse, you know something's rotten. This involves FEMA grants, undocumented hard landings, and personal flights logged as official business. Classic government corruption that'll probably prompt audits of aviation programs nationwide. Always a bad apple somewhere.

Links: AvWeb reporting | New York Post deep dive 

2️⃣ New York Times Gets Private Jets Spectacularly Wrong

The Scoop: The NYT editorial board released a 3.5-minute video claiming private jets don't pay their "fair share" of FAA costs, using misleading comparisons and factually incorrect statements about taxes and fees. They completely ignored federal excise tax, fuel taxes, and property taxes that private aviation pays. Listen to the full episode for a line-by-line breakdown of what they got wrong.

Our Take: This is class warfare disguised as journalism. They claimed private jets don't pay the 7.5% tax that they absolutely do pay, compared apples to oranges on FAA costs vs. ATC services, and used a parking garage analogy that actually proved the opposite point. When the NYT editorial board can't get basic facts right, you know the bias is showing.

Links: NYT video opinion piece | NBAA Fact-check 

3️⃣ Pilatus Suspends US Deliveries Over Swiss Tariffs

The Scoop: Pilatus halted all business jet deliveries to the US after 39% tariffs on Swiss goods took effect August 6th. Unlike the EU, Switzerland can't offer collective trade deals and is threatening to pull out of F-35 agreements in retaliation.

Our Take: This is blunt object negotiating vs. precision instruments. The 5-year PC-12 backlog just got longer, which is great news for existing owners (your valuation just went up) but terrible for those waiting. Maybe this pushes the Denali certification or Pilatus's Tampa finishing center forward.

Links: Pilatus delivery suspension | Swiss trade negotiations by the FT 

4️⃣ Women Pilots Outperform Men in Emergency Study

The Scoop: A small study of 20 low-time pilots (under 300 hours) found women demonstrated more stable landings, completed emergency tasks faster, and showed higher situational awareness ratings during simulator tests. This echoes 1990s research showing similar results when adjusted for experience.

Our Take: Before all the 200-hour Cessna pilots start volunteering to land airliners in emergencies, remember that 70% of fatal car crashes involve men. Ladies, chalk up another win. But seriously, it's a tiny study - we need more data before drawing major conclusions.

Links: Pilot performance study 

🤳 Mile High Madness

This week's wildest aviation content from social media

Jessie's Thomas Flohr Dog Drama: VistaJet CEO Thomas Flohr posted his Labrador riding a chairlift in the Swiss Alps, and Jessie is NOT having it. The poor pup looks terrified and unsafe without a harness or seatbelt. Get that dog a helicopter instead! Safety first, even for four-legged passengers.

Preston's Terry Bradshaw TSA Nightmare: NFL legend Terry Bradshaw got the full TSA treatment - double pat-down, luggage searched item by item, then hauled to a "private room" for more screening. Turns out his private jet was down for maintenance. Lesson: always have backup charter options when your aircraft is AOG.

Why it matters: From celebrity pets to sports legends, even the rich and famous can't escape aviation and travel drama. Always have a Plan B.

⚡ Quick Hits

Other stories on our radar

• Swiss F-35 Threats - Switzerland considering pulling out of fighter jet deals over aviation tariffs

🎧 This Week's Episode

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Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | Website 

✈️ The Final Approach

From government corruption to media bias to international trade wars, this industry faces challenges from every angle. But when the New York Times editorial board can't get basic tax facts right, you know we're dealing with agenda-driven journalism, not reporting. Keep fighting the good fight, and keep those fact-checks coming.

The VIP Seat Weekly is the companion newsletter to The VIP Seat podcast. We give you the business aviation hot takes for your commute.

Jessie’s Links:
Private Aviation Safety Alliance
FlyVizor
LinkedIn

Preston’s Links:
Prestige Aircraft Finance
Private Jet Insider (Newsletter)
LinkedIn
X (Formerly Known as Twitter)