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The MEBAA 2018 business aviation exhibition ended on a positive note After the show ends, it always takes several days before all statistics and calculations related to it are summarized: how many visitors, how many contracts and what trends are set. But the real value of any major event is not always measured by such values. It is very important to assess the quality of the interaction that took place during the exhibition and which is much more difficult to determine.
In mid-December, BizavNews went to Dubai's Al Maktoum International airport, where the next MEBAA exhibition was held, which was attended by 452 companies, and 34 aircraft were presented on statics. Significantly, over 10 aircraft and helicopters have debuted in the region, including the single-engine Cirrus Vision, arguably the smallest aircraft ever to cruise the UAE skies. According to the founder, chairman of the board and CEO of MEBAA – Ali Alnakbi, every year MEBAA has doubled according to statistics, and in 2018 the increase was 15% compared to previous indicators – from 2016. This is the fourth event for us and every time we fly to the Emirates with pleasure in the most comfortable month of the year to look at new products and talk with partners. What immediately caught your eye? Very few people. It seems that the statics are “smart” and the company is respectable, but there are few visitors. Manufacturers who brought in a sufficient number of interesting aircraft were especially affected. Not hiding their regret, they lamented that those “landing of sheikhs” were no longer there, there was no good number of real buyers who visited the exhibition just to purchase aircraft, and the gloss had gone somewhere. Indeed, spending on “outside the exhibition format” has become less. We will analyze the situation in the Middle East business aviation market later. A sufficient amount of time was devoted to this problem – the congress part was very interesting and we gathered a lot of interesting information. In the pavilions, unlike statics, there was at least some movement. This year there has been a noticeable increase in the number of companies offering services in the IT segment. Some of the solutions were quite revolutionary. We will tell you everything, show everything, but in separate materials. The “Design Block” featured interesting projects from Boeing, ACH and Jet Aviation. And Middle Eastern providers, taking advantage of the fact that the overwhelming majority of visitors are local customers, actively promoted their infrastructure projects and announced their development plans.
A little official
A new feature of the past MEVAA was a kind of theater for demonstrating products on a show platform with an interactive presentation of participating companies. Indeed, it was very elegant, and in some cases informative. The traditional MEBAA conference was also held in Dubai. It was attended by experts – leaders of the business aviation segment, who discussed topics of vital interest to a wide audience of business aviation users and service providers. They talked about gray cabotage, blockchain, new solutions in the field of IT development for business aviation, maintenance and the secondary market, as well as the problems of the region, which are associated with political and economic factors. There were quite a lot of people at numerous sessions, and a large number of questions from the audience indicated that the problem really existed.
“It is important that the show inspires confidence,” says Mr. Alnakbi, who turned out to be a very sociable and emotional person who really cares about his work. “I want the visitors to be satisfied, and our main task, if you like, is to ensure the development of fundamentally new segments that are somehow connected with business transportation.” These segments may have meant drone flights over the city for future mobility and supersonic aircraft. Alnakbi sees excellent prospects, for example, for the Aerion AS2 supersonic business jet, which is currently being developed in the United States. “We fly long distances: to Europe, the USA, Asia, so flights on supersonic aircraft are of great importance. To get to your destination does not mean at all that you have to be away from your home or closer to the city you need to fly to. We miss the Concorde, even though it has served limited markets. “
Analyzing the segment opposite to supersonic aviation, Alnakbi expressed a deep interest in promoting “smaller aviation” in the region. For example, he has certain ideas about air taxi flights. “We are losing a huge market due to the fact that we simply do not have planes. I have made repeated statements that at least 20-30 aircraft are required. Air taxi requires a critical mass. Providing business aviation solutions isn't just about wide-body aircraft. We still do not have a segment of relatively small aircraft. ” Discussing the recent closure of charter flights by GI Aviation, Alnakbi lamented, “Plus, you need the right pricing. On a PC-12 for more than $ 3,000 [per hour]? Come on! But if you want to launch an air taxi with the right number of aircraft and at the right price, then MEBAA will support you. “
Ali Alnakbi is very pleased with the interaction that he has observed from the regulators of the entire region. “I want to thank the regulators for working with us. The UAE was one of the first countries to apply IS-BAO [International Business Aviation Flight Standards] and regulators worked closely with us. ” He said that interacting with them helped meet the needs of MEBAA members. “We are not here to break the rules,” Alnakbi said. “But we want to be treated like business aviation operators in the US and Europe.” Ali Alnakbi, who is the vice-chairman of the International Business Aviation Council (IBAC), paid special attention to “gray cabotage”. “The gray market is the enemy of growth,” he says. In addition, he predicted a turning point in the future for issues such as a growing shortage of pilots, supersonic aircraft and the diffusion of technology.
Alnakbi sees several ways in which regulatory authorities can help the exhibition, and MEBAA will have even more success. “Original equipment manufacturers can help us. We need to expand infrastructure and airports. We also need investment in local business aviation operators and in the businesses themselves. I am a great optimist in the Middle East and Africa. We are happy with good growth, healthy growth. MEBAA sees a positive reaction to our business and industry. ” Alnakbi summed it up, ending it with an emotional appeal of young people to the industry. “You and me, we love the smell of jet fuel. But we need to pass on this passion to the next generation, make it desirable for them, show this opportunity. We cannot wait for them to come to us. We need to bring them. I want to do this at the MEBAA level and we need to move that to the IBAC level. Airlines are gaining altitude. We need business aviation to gain even greater heights. “
Walking around the exhibition
The Airbus A340-500 with Citadel cabin and the luxurious Boeing BBJ787 Dreamliner, which immediately after the exhibition will become board number 1 for the head of state, became the absolute bestsellers of MEBAA, but we have not found out which one. Both ships have truly luxurious interiors and we will dedicate separate materials to them. Gulfstream landed a real trooper in Dubai. Two premieres at once: G500 and G600, in addition to the G550, G650ER and G280 gathered a sufficient number of visitors on static basis, from the ruler of Dubai to potential buyers. Gulfstream made striking installations, and invited guests to the exhibition with live music, as well as excellent cuisine. The main exhibition space at the entrance to the statics was deservedly occupied by the Dassault Falcon with the flagship 8X. The French also actively promoted their new project 6X. As with their American counterparts, the plane was a favorite destination for visitors and numerous selfie lovers. The manufacturer is very pleased with the sales situation in the region, but wants to further strengthen its niche in the ultra-long-range class.
Bombardier brought to MEBAA a full-scale mockup of the new Global 7500 along with numerous Global and Challengers, most of which were presented by partners and offered for sale. The situation is similar with Embraer. Lineage 1000E became the flagship of the exhibition, visitors could get acquainted with the Legacy 650E and Legacy 500.
Another giant, Airbus Corporate Jet, was represented by two ACJ319 liners: Comlux and Acropolis. Both aircraft have a fundamentally different concept of interiors, but they are united by their unsurpassed comfort and functionality. And the helicopter “daughter” of Airbus – ASN – participated in MEBAA for the first time, presenting to the general public a full-scale model of the ACN145 helicopter with a Mercedes-Benz cabin. The European manufacturer is still very positive about its prospects for the region, attributing this to the imminent entry of the NEO family aircraft into the market.
The main competitor of Europeans, the American aircraft manufacturer Boeing, announced the launch of a business version of the new wide-body airliner BBJ777X. According to the company, the aircraft will surpass any competitors in flight range and will be able to connect any two cities on the planet with a non-stop flight. We are talking about two modifications – the BBJ777-8 will cover 21570 km, and the BBJ777-9 will be able to cover the distance of 20370 km without landing. Boeing promises to compensate for the shorter flight range with a more spacious cabin.
Not without “Russian participation” – Comlux presented the domestic SBJ, which really aroused genuine interest among the public. Perhaps this was due to the fact that Russia is just beginning its journey into the world of administrative aircraft and their first experience is very interesting. “It's a discovery for me that your country is working with such large machines. What I see is very appealing to me. Look, there is a lot of space here, which means that there are many possibilities to implement any concept. And the plane itself, even outwardly, is very nice. I heard that the flight range does not yet allow him to join the race with the aviation industry guru, but I am sure that this problem can be solved, ”one of the plane's visitors shared his impressions.
Another business jet has become a Mecca for guests – the HondaJet Elite. The aircraft has already made its debut in the region and its prospects are very positive. It is worth recalling that Jetex Flight Support, the region's largest service provider, has been appointed Honda Aircraft Company 's exclusive sales representative for HondaJet Elite aircraft in the Middle East. A corresponding agreement was signed by Jetex Flight Support head Adel Mardini and Honda Aircraft head Michimasa Fujino. “In the zone of influence” Jetex Flight Support 10 countries in the region, including Turkey.
The helicopter segment was poorly represented. Only Bell Helicopter distinguished itself with Bell 429 and Bell 505. Local operator Falcon Aviation presented Leonardo AW169.
Ours in Dubai
MEVAA has always attracted the interest of our compatriots. The current exhibition was no exception, although this year no company participated with its stand. Russian speech was heard everywhere and, in our estimate, almost every tenth visitor was either from Russia or from the CIS countries. We were doubly curious to know their opinion about the event.
“This time we were surprised to notice that we were in the desert. Not in the literal sense – after all, we have been in it and at all other MEBAA exhibitions – but figuratively. Few stands, few people, few planes. The revival was observed only when a few official delegations arrived, otherwise there was a huge difference between 2016 and the current one. On the other hand, the specificity of our business – the sale of aircraft – is such that we measure success by the number of meetings with potential clients: either direct buyers and owners, or with their representatives. We had a task to show a specific aircraft, and according to this parameter, the exhibition turned out to be quite successful for us. We had a number of scheduled and spontaneous shows, and we felt some of them were promising. So in this regard, and for us, MEBAA 2018 almost did not yield to the 2016 exhibition. However, I can say that colleagues from other areas of our industry were dissatisfied, and I understand them perfectly, ”comments Ivan Veretennikov, Development Director of ArcosJet.
“The exhibition in 2018, as noted by all visitors, became a little smaller, but, of course, remained the same quality. Exhibitors and visitors had ample time to negotiate and discuss details. And of course, the sunny weather in December influenced everyone, a positive attitude was felt all three days both in the pavilion and on static. In general, the result was in line with our expectations, there were many interesting meetings and useful contacts, ”says Nadezhda Turovskaya, Marketing Director of A-Group.
“The event made an overall positive impression, despite the compact size and statics and stands compared to the last MEBAA 2016. All manufacturers were represented on statics and each of them was good in its own way, based on the needs of individual potential buyers. Personally, I was most impressed by the Dreamliner, which really deserves its name. I also liked the domestic SSJ, which, I am sure, has a future not only in the Russian but also in the Middle East market. A small number of stands, in my opinion, played a positive role, as it contributed to more comfortable communication, both with partners and with new participants. Summing up, one cannot fail to note the oriental hospitality, local flavor, investment and perseverance in the development and targeted use of every piece of practically lifeless land, where modern business aviation complexes appear on the territory of the once unknown Al Maktoum airport, which offer exceptional VVIP service. as we have seen for ourselves. The exhibition pleased both with the official and unofficial parts. We will be happy to return here in 2020, ”said Elena Zhdanova, Development Director of RusJet Airlines.
