NBAA 2014 delivered an unobstructed vision of the future. We’ll be flying faster in larger, longer-range aircraft. They’ll be outfitted with a growing array of increasingly reliable safety devices. Fly-by-wire will become the standard. Before long we’ll be routinely exceeding the sound barrier. And we’ll be buying more business aircraft than we have been – good news for everyone in business aviation.

As always at NBAA, every conceivable gadget, safety device and upgrade was on display, experts at the ready with in-depth explanations. Every new aircraft was on view at the static, along with a broad representation of current models.

It’s All About the Connections

Despite the proliferation of sparkling hardware, the show’s biggest benefits are the human relationships forged and renewed. Even in an industry that flies for a living, face-to-face opportunities are limited. NBAA provides a reliable, annual meet-up.

Whether you’re offering aviation services or hardware, it’s a marketing extravaganza you really can’t afford to miss.

Highlights From NBAA 2014

• More than 26,000 attended, up slightly from 2013.

  

• Major aircraft announcements included the new Gulfstream G500 and G600, both large-cabin, long-range fly-by-wire aircraft. The Embraer Legacy 500, the first midsize fly-by-wire, earned FAA type certification on the convention’s first day. Bombardier showed a mock-up of its new Challenger 650 and Dassault Falcon showed a mock-up of its new 5X.

• Aerion, developer of the AS2 supersonic business jet, announced a partnership with Airbus. Allan McArtor, Airbus Group chairman, said the partnership will take the three-engine Mach 1.6 jet “To the finish line.”

• Both Honeywell, in partnership with AT&T, and SmartSky – partnered with Textron Aviation, Duncan Aviation, Harris Corporation and Satcom Direct – announced new 4G LTE networks that will span the United States with cell phone service that can reach both commercial and business aircraft.

• Wheels Up, a new membership-based concept in on-demand private aviation, continues its rapid expansion with new service to Texas and surrounding states.

• In news that was especially significant to us because of our longtime relationship with FlightSafety International, the NBAA’s 2014 Al Ueltschi Award for Humanitarian Leadership went to International Jet Service for its work using business aviation to help make seriously ill kids’ dreams come true. Ueltschi, the late founder of FlightSafety, would have loved International Jet CEO Lynn Krogh’s comment: “When a parent says, ‘This is one of the highlights of my child’s life.’ … How do you put a price on that?”

Dallas Airmotive, a member company of UK-based BBA Aviation, makes the most of its presence at NBAA 2014 by rebuilding a Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 engine – right on the convention floor. It was one of the most popular floor displays. We were among many at the convention who made it a point to cruise by the BBA booth periodically to see how the rebuild was progressing.  

Pick Your Show – and Show Up

Members of our agency have been going to the show for 25 years now. It just keeps getting better. We wouldn’t miss it. Whether it’s NBAA, EBACE, ABACE or another show that caters to your particular corner of the aviation world, you shouldn’t either.

This column ran in the October 29 issue of BlueSky Business Aviation News.

If kids didn’t pick up on the message – “Aviation is for everyone.” – it’s not for lack of trying. The second annual Kansas Aviation Expo set out on September 22 for a three-day, three-stops-a-day Fly Kansas air tour. High-school bands played. Speakers addressed local schoolchildren and, at each stop, highlighted different aspects of aviation. The role of airports in a community. The many uses for helicopters. The brave new world of unmanned aerial vehicles. There were demos of full-motion flight simulators, tours of aircraft manufacturing plants, and one-on-one interaction with aviation professionals who are out there every day. Living the dream.

An Adventure in Learning

Day Four found the tour in Wichita where hundreds of teens participated in Captain Barrington Irving’s Flying Classroom as it begins its global tour.

The 30-year-old, Jamaican-born Irving plans to set new world records as he travels to all seven continents and connects with youth worldwide. He can do it, too. This National Geographic Emerging Explorer became the youngest person to fly solo around the world in 2007. For his current endeavor, he’s using a transformed business jet, a Hawker 400XPR. It serves as a virtual classroom promoting science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) for grades 3 through 10. The kids also had the chance to learn about aviation career opportunities at booths hosted by local employers.

“It was fantastic to see all these companies come out to help inspire the next generation of aviation leaders,” says Jesse Romo, director of the Kansas Department of Transportation Aviation. “Our outreach included direct interaction with at least 900 kids. I’m confident we sparked some dreams. Hopefully some big ones.”

Thursday evening 31-year-old Amelia Rose Earhart regaled attendees with anecdotes from her recent round-the-world flight, retracing the route taken in 1937 by her famed namesake. Amelia uses her position as president of the Fly With Amelia Foundation to encourage girls to follow her lead. The foundation’s flight-training scholarships should prove to be positive game-changers for deserving young women.

This gentleman watched Amelia Mary Earhart depart from Oakland International Airport in 1937.

He was waiting with a giant bouquet of roses when Amelia Rose Earhart returned on July 11, 2014 and became the youngest woman to fly around the world in a single-engine plane. He said he’d waited 77 years to deliver those flowers.

From Barnstorming to Business The expo’s final, fifth day brought speakers representing a broad aviation spectrum, from avionics and security to medical issues and regulations. Congressman Mike Pompeo, a longtime champion for aviation and education, served as the lunchtime keynote speaker, which doubled as the September meeting of the Wichita Aero Club. Pompeo’s Small Aircraft Revitalization Act (SARA) was signed into law in November 2013. It gives the FAA until the end of 2015 to adopt changes to the regulations governing the certification of many general aviation aircraft – although those in the know say there will be delays in meeting this deadline. Regardless of when it’s finally implemented, Pompeo told the Air Capital crowd, “It will give you the opportunity to compete for customers all around the world.”

My colleagues and I left the event inspired by all we’d heard – especially the themes of never taking no for an answer and not letting others set expectations for you. After last year’s inaugural expo, everyone hoped the event would continue to grow. It has. “We couldn’t have asked for a better show,” Romo says. And, ever the idea man, he starts sharing thoughts about next year’s event. I can’t wait.

Featured in top image: Kansas Department of Transportation Division of Aviation Director Jesse Romo (left) and Kansas Commission on Aerospace Education President Brian Youngers lead the organizations hosting this year’s expo.

This column ran in the October 1 issue of BlueSky Business Aviation News.