Singapore Air Show 2016
The trade segment of Singapore Airshow 2016 concluded on a positive note with exhibitors and trade visitors giving the thumbs up to the wide range of emerging opportunities, dialogues and technologies that were the main themes of this year’s event. Among the highlights were the nearly 60 companies comprising the French pavilion, the largest French presence ever at an airshow outside of France, which included prime contractors, equipment manufacturers, small to medium enterprises, and maintenance specialists; as well as the more than 140 exhibitors who represented the United States of America.
“This edition of the Singapore Airshow has been an excellent success for all the members of GIFAS, and more particularly for our SMEs. The status of Feature Country has clearly given a deeper dimension to the relationship between our two industries which we are looking forward to grow further,” stated Mr Vincent Gorry, Director, European and International Affairs, GIFAS.
The Philippines also made event history by participating as a country pavilion for the first time at the Singapore Airshow and commemorated its debut by announcing deals with Airbus, Harris Corporation and Rolls-Royce.
A total of 50 deals were signed at the show 2016, representing an increase of 14% over 2014. These included 11 deals with a total value of US$12.7 billion, as well as 40 deals with undisclosed values announced by 20 companies. In line with changing business trends, and as the industry becomes more sophisticated and competitive, a growing proportion of the announcements and deals included undisclosed values. More deals were announced by LCCs and aircraft leasing companies compared to 2014. In addition, there were eight MOU signatures compared to four in 2014 as industry stakeholders looked to build future capabilities. Singapore Airshow 2016 saw close to 10% increase in trade visitors, as well as a nearly 5% increase in the number of VIP delegations. There was also an increase in the number of local companies exhibiting in the Singapore Pavilion, with 36 companies taking part this year, compared to 29 in 2014.
The wide array of opportunities at the Airshow spanned the commercial, defence, MRO, R&D and manufacturing sectors. These opportunities not only emerged within industry sectors, but also from Asian countries and markets that displayed significant potential and were key focal areas for exhibitors and visitors. GE Aviation announced new investments