This year marks the 71st year of one of the biggest conventions in the US, NBAA-BACE.
As always, the National Business Aviation Association [NBAA] brought together aviation professionals for one of the most significant aviation conferences and exhibition in the United States. The 2018 NBAA Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition [NBAA-BACE] took place at the Orange County Convention Center [OCCC] in Orlando, Florida. Of course, Jetex and our popular orange booth was there!
NBAA-BACE: Amongst The Greatest
The annual conference and exhibition attracted around 25,000 attendees and had about 100 aircraft models on show in the static display area. This event allowed for nearly 1,000 exhibitors to showcase their latest products, services, and more.
Everyone attending the event also had the opportunity to take part in multiple educational and networking sessions. This year definitely provided an interesting an exciting line up of speakers. The show took a look at the past, the present, and focused on future solutions.
NBAA-BACE, Day One
The first day of the event kicked off by looking towards the future of business aviation. The topic in itself brought excitement and enthusiasm to the professionals attending the conference. The future looks very bright as FAA Acting Administrator, Dan Elwell, shared, “business aviation has always been very helpful when it comes to supporting modernization, especially when it comes to adopting new technologies.” This statement rings very true, especially when companies – like Jetex – are creating collaborations to build future solutions to present-day problems. Find out more about our partnership with Wright Electric here.
The day carried on with news that reaffirmed just how important the business aviation industry is to companies and communities. The Harris Poll conducted a survey that showed the value of business aviation and its benefits. The study pointed out that 51.6% passengers that use private aviation services enjoy the flexibility it offers. Private aviation doesn’t just benefit its passengers but also benefits the locations the passengers are traveling to. According to the survey, 31.5% of the destinations traveled to receive little to no air traffic.
Day one of NBAA-BACE concluded that the business aviation industry pushes boundaries to provide solutions and leads innovation through modernization.
NBAA-BACE, Day Two
The second day celebrated the aviation industry’s past, which had provided the present-day industry with many lessons and the opportunity to fine-tune and redevelop the way forward. 2018 has seen many aeronautical companies pushing boundaries and studying cleaner ways to travel the skies. Companies have been working on developing different aircraft models that can function by using electricity, biofuel, solar power, and more. The day carried on with an educational session that presented attendees with the possibility of blockchain, vertical-take-off and landing, and other innovative software that will shape the industry’s future.
In recent years, companies have been studying and creating ways to develop driverless cars. It only made sense that the NBAA-BACE panel would imagine and consider the possibilities of a pilotless vertical-take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft – an idea that would reshape and revolutionize urban transportation.
Day two of the event concluded that the way forward is to learn from the past, redevelop the present, and dream of what the future could be.
NBAA-BACE, Day Three
The final day of this convention ended with the NBAA’s fourth annual National Safety Forum. This forum looked at the common operational errors, and examined the human factors that could potentially be cause for an incident. NBAA Chair Gen. Lloyd “Fig” Newton emphasized, “if you have professionalism, then you have safety.”
NBAA-BACE ended with a new found focus on reshaping the industry as it moves forward. Aerobatic Pilot Antony Oshinuga said it best by stating, “you can absolutely do what we do, it just takes training, motivation and dedication” during the NBAA careers discussion.
This convention achieved what it always achieves: brought together aviation professionals and aviation students from all across the globe, reigniting passion and drive to create a brighter, better future!
