Dubai Airshow confounds its critics

Coming so soon after the tragic events of September 11 and their devastating impact on the global aviation business, perhaps the most remarkable thing about the Dubai Airshow 2001 was that the event took place at all.

But the Dubai Government and exhibition organisers kept their nerve and the result was generally held to be an excellent airshow, albeit with a 10% reduction in the number of exhibitors and a somewhat larger fall in visitors. However, the VIP visitors were still very much in town.

'During Sunday and Monday we received 151 official delegations from 52 countries of which 70 were civil aviation focussed,' said Virginia Kern, chairman of Fairs and Exhibitions, the event organiser. There was also no doubt that big deals were being struck.

The biggest came with a heart stopping $15 billion order for Boeing and Airbus aircraft from Emirates Airline. Airbus officials just could not stop smiling all week as they reflected on what an order for 22 superjumbo A380s would mean for their company.

Even normally sceptical commentators saw Emirates' order as a staggering declaration of confidence in the future of Dubai in particular, and the aviation industry in general. Emirates Airline chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum said he was targeting 180% growth by the year 2010, and for good measure announced that a $2.5 billion third terminal will be added to Dubai International Airport over the next few years.

Other orders rather paled by comparison with a huge engine order from Emirates for Rolls Royce as the only one to enter this league. Not surprisingly, military aircraft took more of a backseat at this airshow than at past events, perhaps because US airplanes are currently still engaged in Afghanistan and thus the focus was on the commercial airline industry.

This industry is currently in a major crisis with only the business jet market prospering in the mayhem that has followed the tragic events of September 11. Business jet giant NetJets reported a 20 per cent rise in business since this date, with the convenience of check-ins, safety and privacy now paramount among corporate customers.

At a time when many airlines are facing bankruptcy and the aviation industry is in turmoil, the Dubai Airshow 2001 was a reminder that for a great industry the show must always go on, even if it could not be said to be quite business as usual.