FRIEDRICHSHAFEN, Germany — This year’s AERO attracted 32,600 visitors from around the world, according to organizers.
The largest general aviation show in Europe, AERO boasted 630 exhibitors from 35 countries.
Everything that flies — except commercial airliners and military aircraft — was represented at Lake Constance: Ultralight and Very Light Aircraft (VLA), one and two-engine aircraft, turboprops and gyrocopters, kites and trikes as well as the entire world of suppliers and service providers. Maintenance, avionics and the latest business jets in general aviation were there, complemented by electric aircraft and helicopters. The show organizers credit the presence of exhibitors from the glider industry, who returned in 2013, for this year’s marked increase in visitor numbers.
The aviation show is the number one show in Europe for companies in general aviation. As project leader Roland Bosch puts it: “The show at Lake Constance is an especially important meeting for industry experts. This is where engineers and builders meet; there’s an exchange of views at a very high level. This is especially evident at the conferences and international meetings, but also in the special shows dealing with different propulsion systems, research flights (observe by air), and flight control and navigation devices. This is where experts can put the newest equipment to its first real practical test.
Exhibitor Comments
Christian Dries, CEO, Diamond Aircraft Industries GmbH: “The AERO Friedrichshafen is just really good. Internationally, and I’m not the only one who says this, it is the most important and best general aviation trade show in the world.”
Otmar Birkner, CEO, AutoGyro GmbH: “This year’s AERO went very well and we can sense that informed visitors had considerable interest in our product. Our appearance here at the show is centered on providing information about different applications and presenting our concepts. The good infrastructure and the ability to reach an international audience here at the show certainly justify the effort. In any case, our 20-person team here at the show was certainly not bored.”
Dr. Nicolas von Mende, CEO, Atlas Air Service AG: “This year, for the first time, we used a new concept for presentation here, to best represent all of our business areas. We are presenting our business jets at the static display and in the exhibition hall itself we are showing off our services, such as training, maintenance, etc. That way, we can cover the entire spectrum of Atlas Air. So far, the new concept has been quite successful. Presenting at the AERO is a must for us, so we can cultivate relationships with our customers and talk with other players in the industry. This is definitely the place where everyone in the industry gets together.”
The lectures and presentations at the AERO Conference were also well-attended, according to organizers. For the future, the AERO team wants to bring the next generation on board and get them excited about careers in the cockpit.
The next AERO will take place from April 9-12, 2014 at the exhibition grounds in Friedrichshafen.