SINGASPORE AIRSHOW 2024

Bounces back to full strength

- Athol Franz

Airshow Singapore organisers are heralding a strong comeback for the 2024 edition following the smaller, curtailed shows in 2020 and 2022 during the pandemic crisis. "It has been a long six years since we last had a fullscale Singapore Airshow, but we are back," said the managing director of event organiser Experia, Leck Chet Lam, who went on to explain that this year's edition has recovered to the pre-pandemic levels of the 2018 show.

About 90 percent of the world's top aerospace companies are exhibiting and the show features 16 country pavilions that include China, the Czech Republic and South Korea for the first time. More than 1,000 companies from 50 countries are participating, with trade visitors expected to number around 50,000.

There are 48 aircraft scheduled to appear in the static display, the highlights of which are Comac's ARJ21 and C919 airliners and the Changhe Z-10ME attack helicopter. Comac brought five airliners altogether, with two ARJ21s and a C919 in the static display and examples of each flying in the daily aerial displays. Along with the Z-10, the aircraft all are making their international airshow debuts. The Dassault Falcon 6X and Gulfstream G700 long-range business jet are also appearing in Singapore for the first time.

As the leading aerospace exhibition in the Asia-Pacific region (APAC), the Singapore Airshow's relevance appears stronger than ever. Airbus predicts that, of the 21,000 commercial aircraft to be delivered globally over the next two decades, 46 percent will go to APAC customers. The region's economic growth and the emergence of middle classes account for much of the increased demand for air travel.