606 exhibitors show off the entire spectrum of the aviation industry

606 companies from around the world are exhibiting at the AERO, the global show for general aviation, through Saturday, April 23, 2016. General aviation is represented with single- and multi-engine piston-driven airplanes, helicopters, gyrocopters, turboprops and multi-engine jets along with historic gliders. Drones, new aircraft engines and onboard electronics, aviation accessories and services, as well as flight school offerings round out the program. At the same time, special areas focusing on the themes of electric aircraft, onboard electronics and AERODrones will feature new content. With the slogan “Be a pilot”, the AERO is promoting the dream of flight and thereby motivating the next generation of pilots.


Messe Friedrichshafen CEO Klaus Wellmann and AERO project leader Roland Bosch are purposefully focusing on new impulses: “a technically-oriented trade show like the AERO must also show how fascinating the subject of flight is,” emphasized Roland Bosch. That is why encouraging the next generation of pilots is also a major goal of the Messe Friedrichshafen team. For this reason, entrance to the show will be free of charge for all visitors under 16 years old for the first time, something that previously only applied to young people under 14. Interested visitors will be able to watch drone pilots conduct their maneuvers in the indoor flight hall at the AERO (ZEPPELIN CAT Hall A1). The spectacular images that the flying machines send from the air to the pilots on the ground will be projected onto a large screen. Anyone interested in the new and action-packed sport of drone racing should come to the aviation exhibition.


At the launch of the international aviation exhibition, industry representatives addressed a number of issues in a press meeting moderated by Marcel Wagner, who is an airplane and helicopter pilot as well as television host.


Udo Beran, General Secretary of the Deutscher Aero Club:

“From the bird’s-eye perspective of the Deutscher Aero Club, the industry is in better shape than it thinks. Membership figures have been rising for the past five years, and in the last two years in the increase in member figures has acquired a special dynamic: The AERO is the event of the year, the place where everyone comes together. I also find it remarkable that, for example, there are a lot of innovations in the Avionics Area and the Engine Area. You can see that the fascination is in the details. Like how can we reduce flight noise and emissions?”


Prof. Elmar Giemulla, President of AOPA Germany (Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association):

“In our view, things have bottomed out. The decline in AOPA membership numbers has stopped, that is clear - and they are now steadily rising.”
“The AERO is a kind of family celebration. What fascinates me most are the small advances that you can observe here. The elimination of paper maps, for example, is a big quantum leap. At the AERO, you can observe a large technological jump.”


Dr. Nicolas von Mende, CEO of Atlas Air Service AG:

“We have not seen any growth since the financial crisis in 2008 and 2009 - neither in terms of aircraft movements, nor in the sizes of business jets fleets, if you look at Europe as a whole. The German economy is in a good position and is a growth market. In Southeastern Europe and Ukraine, for example, the markets have practically collapsed. The situation is currently ideal for buyers. Manufacturers have invested their pre-2008 profits and have brought new, very attractive products onto the market. We hope that the growth course will return.”


Daniel Kunz, Head of Aircraft Sales at Rheinland Air Service:

“I see bright moments: In the case of the TBM, a single-engine turboprop, we are seeing strong demand. We are going in as optimists. If you are not an optimist, you don’t take this job. I think the fascinating thing about the AERO is that everyone is an aviator - you talk pilot to pilot. The entire spectrum is here and that makes the AERO something special.”


Dr. Frank Liemandt, Spokesman of the German Helicopter Association (Deutscher Hubschrauber Verband):

“In the field of air rescue services, for example, things are going very well right now, equipment changes are ensuring industry contracts and we have a good political situation. Pressure is coming from new products like drones: they are entering the airspace and taking the market away from us.”


Willi Tacke, e-flight-expo:

“Ultralight aviation is looking good, steady with light growth. For example, ultralight helicopters are taking over responsibility for monitoring the TGVs in France. Things go down in one area and up in another. In regard to e-flight, everything has fallen into place last year. The EU Commissioner visited us at the AERO last year and dedicated a lot of time to this topic. This year, almost all of the big manufacturers in general aviation are making themselves heard in the field of e-flight. That creates dynamism. The e-revolution is coming now.”