Within a few days of each other the aviation authorities of Canada and Brazil have individually granted supplemental type certificate (STC) validation to Van Horn Aviation's Bell 206L main rotor blade.

The validations of the existing FAA STC apply to VHA 206L blades to be installed on applicable LongRanger models in these countries.

Transport Canada issued STC SH18-69 on December 3, 2018 applying to 206L, 206L-1, 206L-3, and 206L-4 aircraft in Canada, while the Agencia Nacional de Aviação Civil issued STC 2018S11-11 on November 29, 2018 for 206L-1, 206L-3, and 206L-4 aircraft in Brazil.

As of December 3, 2018, VHA 206L main rotor blades have been shipped to New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, and the United States, with multiple sets already flying in New Zealand and the U.S. Now Canadian and Brazilian operators will be able to upgrade their LongRangers with VHA 206L main rotor blades.

The VHA 206L main rotor blades use the same composite materials and construction methods as Van Horn's 206B JetRanger main rotor blades, including fibreglass root and tip blocks, foam core, carbon fibre spar and skin, and stainless steel/nickel abrasion strips. The main differences between the two main blades is an additional 22 inches on the 206L blade and design changes to account for the differences in the transmission suspension between the LongRanger and JetRanger.