Big names gather in Dubai for 11th edition of air show

After dominating most of the headline news at the Paris Airshow earlier this year, Middle East airlines are once again ready to soar high with the opening of the Dubai Airshow 2009 today.

The 11th edition of the five-day air show is expected to open on a high note even as the world economy as well as global air travel is grappling with one of their worst periods.

Despite everything, the biennial show has managed to attract the world's top aircraft manufacturers, suppliers, service providers and airlines, with some 890 companies from 47 countries exhibiting at the air show, marking a 10 per cent increase over the previous event in 2007, which attracted 850 exhibitors.

As Alison Weller, Director of air show organiser, F&E Aerospace, puts it, this year's event is more about "new-to-market" companies. "Of course, some companies that had a presence at the 2007 show have cancelled out due to tough times, and some have a smaller presence than the previous show. The good news is 150 new-to-market exhibitors from 20 countries will make their debut at the event, at which up to 50,000 visitors are expected," she said.

However, on the downside, while most big names in the aviation space – Airbus, Boeing, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Qatar Airways, Bombardier, Cessna, Royal Jet, Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE), Mubadala Development Company, Dubai Airports, Dubai World Central and European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS) – have a strong presence at the show, sizeable orders are unlikely to come by, unlike at the last show when the order book mounted up to a record breaking $155.5 billion (Dh571bn).

When asked about the estimated order value for this year's show, Weller said: "We could not predict the $155bn worth of orders recorded at the last air show in Dubai. So I am not going to hazard a guess for this year's show. However, it is very doubtful that we would be able to get the same value of orders given the global economic downturn. But we can remain hopeful."

But industry executives are confident the show will be a busy one.

Adel Ali, Chief Executive Officer of Sharjah-based budget carrier, Air Arabia, recently told Emirates Business that Dubai Airshow 2009 is expected to be a "busy one" despite the global aviation industry having been severely hit by the recession.

"We hope to see some activity taking place even in tough times," he said.

Meanwhile, about 130 aircraft will be displayed in the static park, including the 14 aircraft types participating in the daily flying display, compared to some 174 aircraft that jostled for space on the static park during the 2007 air show. Apart from that, even as Boeing failed to fly its Dreamliner, the 787, to the show this year, the world's largest aircraft – the Airbus A380 – will be dominating the airspace just like it did during the air show in 2007.

Defence to be the focus

With defence spending in the Middle East expected to reach more than $100bn by 2014, passenger planes are expected to take a back seat at this year's show.

At a time when the United States and European countries are scaling down their defence budgets, globally, the Middle East is forecast to account for 11 per cent of all arms spending by 2014, with Saudi Arabia set to spend $36bn annually for the next five years on its defence budget.

While the kingdom is in talks to purchase military transport helicopters from Russia and additional Eurofighter Typhoon jets, the UAE is currently negotiating with Italian and French defence contractors to buy about 100 fighter jets.

Military aircraft manufacturers such as Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, BAE Systems, Raytheon and Dassault Aviation will be showcasing their latest offerings during the show. Military participation at this year's show is expected to grow to 40 per cent as organisers expect defence orders to make up for the drop expected in orders from the commercial aviation sector carriers.

The firsts

Among the firsts, the air show will witness a full-scale mock up of Eurocopter EC 175, a 16-seat civilian helicopter, with Aerion exhibiting a mock-up of the supersonic business jet.

The latest US stealth technology fighter plane, the F-22 Raptor, will also make its Middle East debut at the air show. The plane, produced by Lockheed Martin, is the only fighter with the capacity to simultaneously engage in air-to-air and air-to-ground combat missions.

Dassault Aviation's Rafale fighter jet will also be making an appearance at the show for the first time.

Yet another first will be Eurofighter, exhibiting for the first time at Dubai Airshow, which will display a full-scale replica of the jet in the static park. Airbus will also show a full-scale cabin replica of the A350, the new wide-body aircraft.

Business aviation manufacturers such as Gulfstream and Embraer will have a significant presence at the air show. Other major exhibitors include Lufthansa and Lockheed Martin from the military side, and Bombardier from Canada.

Impressive display

Even though Emirates, the official carrier of the 2009 Dubai Airshow, does not have any major order announcements lined up for the show, the airline said last week it will take centre stage as it prepares to welcome aviation professionals from around the world to the show.

Besides, celebrating its 50th year of operations, Dnata, the travel management arm of Emirates Group, will have a strong presence at the air show this year, showcasing its four divisions – airport operations, cargo, international and travel services.

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