How Farnborough air show went from physical to virtual success

“A heady mix of politics, kerosene and cocktails.” That is how one aerospace veteran describes the industry’s summer trade fair at Farnborough, in the south-east of England, where every two years the global industry gathers to strike billion dollar deals on civil and military aircraft. Only this year, there was no kerosene, no cocktails and no deals. For the first time in Farnborough air show’s 72-year history, the skies over Hampshire’s most famous airfield were silent after the event was cancelled in March because of the constraints imposed by coronavirus.  Instead of a display of the latest fast jets and commercial aircraft, the show was replaced by five days of pre-recorded webinars and presentations and rebranded Farnborough Connect. It is believed to be the first global air show to be carried out entirely online, and the first in Farnborough’s recent history where Airbus and Boeing, who together dominate the commercial aerospace market, could not play the tit-for-tat game of “our orders are bigger than yours”.  Given the unprecedented downturn in aviation owing to the pandemic, it is unlikely that any orders would have been secured this year in any case. Airlines, which have seen passenger numbers collapse, are scaling fleets back so radically that the industry estimates the market for aircraft could be 30-50% smaller for the next few years. Yet, even without the excitement of billions of dollars in orders being placed after all-night negotiating sessions, many who attended the virtual air show were full of praise for the event. Story has more.<br/>