Jetrader - Autumn 2016 - 19

To view more photos from the airshow,
chalet and reception, visit www.istat.org/
airshow and click the event photos link.

The new 737MAX-8.

The huge Antonov 124.

747-8 Freighter with the Bloodhound supersonic car.

Will 2016 be a breakthrough year for the Bombardier CSeries?

a bus, many decided to get off halfway and
walk to the showgrounds. The next hurdle
proved to be the security checkpoint. While
such checkpoints are unavoidable these
days, the capacity was hopelessly inadequate and the checks took way too long.
Actually, one can wonder about personal
security in a situation where hundreds of
trade visitors are densely packed together
in a queue waiting for a bus, or for the
security checkpoint itself.
After a journey of well over two hours
between Waterloo station and the airshow,
we arrived just in time to see the approach
of the Red Arrows in close formation with
an F35 against a leaden grey sky. For many
visitors, this flyby came as a surprise, but
to those who looked up in time (and in the
right direction) it was definitely one of
the more spectacular sights of the week.
While the official afternoon flying display
program promised a few more interesting
demo flights (including the new Boeing

737 MAX 8 and the Lockheed F-35B), this
wasn't to be, at least not on this Monday.
The trade visitors were enjoying their lunch
in the various chalets while outside the
drizzle became a downpour and a thunderstorm dumped a deluge of rain on the
Airshow. Many visitors (including myself)
on their way to the next business meeting were caught by surprise, arriving for
their appointments in soaking-wet business
suits, definitely not a great way to make
your grand entrance as a "sophisticated"
business person. Inside the exhibition halls
another disaster scenario unfolded. At several places water had leaked through the
roof, and as it started to flood the halls, the
organizers were forced to cut the electricity for safety reasons. It became obvious
these were not the circumstances for an
Airshow. The flying display was cancelled
and security staff ordered everybody out,
resulting in chaotic scenes around the exits
and the bus stops. At least this premature

end to the show gave everybody ample time
to get back to their hotels, put on a dry suit
and make their way to the traditional (and
excellent) ISTAT reception in Grosvenor
House on Park Lane.
On Tuesday, traditionally the busiest
of the trade days, anybody with a Monday
ticket was granted access free of charge
by the organizers (bravo!) to compensate
for the cancellation of the Monday program. While the bus shuttles seemed to
work a little better on Tuesday morning,
security was still an issue and eventually
sniffer dogs were brought in to pre-clear
visitors without bags. Fortunately, while
not fantastic, the weather on Tuesday was
good enough to permit the entire flying
display program to be completed. Apart
from some light aircraft flying in the early
hours, Airbus opened the dance with its
A380, A350-900 and the military A400M.
While the A380 display is always impressive, to the disappointment of many and
Jetrader * Autumn 2016 19
http://www.istat.org/
Jetrader - Autumn 2016

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