Despite the turmoil outside the sunshine state, the business
avation industry is still doing business... and lots of it. NBAA
President and CEO Ed Bolen welcomed Attendees of the NBAA 61st
Annual Meeting & Convention at this morning's Opening General
Session, which featured distinguished speaker Roberto Kobeh
González, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
president, along with Ron Kaplan, executive director of the
National Aviation Association Hall of Fame, who announced this
year's recipient of the Combs-Gates Award.
To underscore the increasing international presence of business
aviation, NBAA invited Kobeh to give this year's keynote address.
The engineer, professor and former deputy general has served as
ICAO's president since 2006. "It is a great pleasure for me to
address this Opening Session, and to take part in the largest and
most important civil aviation event," said Kobeh.
His address focused on several key issues facing the business
aviation community including safety, security, airspace management
and environmental concerns. Kobeh commended the excellent safety
record of business aviation and advocated for "workable security
measures that will not compromise operations, and will help achieve
secure air transportation in an intelligent and practical way."
He also championed the use of "NextGen" toward maximizing
efficient use of the airspace system, and noted that global
aviation accounts for two percent of total emissions, with aircraft
now 70 percent more fuel efficient than thirty years ago. Kobeh
emphasized the aggressive work that the aviation community
continues to pursue in maintaining minimal environmental impact,
describing a plan of environmental action to be submitted to the
2009 meeting of the United Nations to revise the Post-Kyoto
Agreement.
Also at the session, Executive Director of the National Aviation
Hall of Fame (NAHF) Ron Kaplan announced the recipient of the 6th
annual Combs-Gates Award, which is intended to spur the research
and preservation of the nation's aviation heritage, supporting
projects that document the value of the aviation industry to the
world. The NAHF was established in Dayton, OH, in 1962, to honor
individuals who have made important contributions to the industry
and its heritage.
Presented by NAHF enshrinee Colonel Joe Kittinger, this year's
recipient of the $20,000 award is the First Flight Foundation of
Kitty Hawk, NC. First Flight Foundation was selected in recognition
of its work to resurrect and restore the Wright Brothers National
Memorial Monument, a costly six-month project. President John
Harris and Executive Director Lola Hilton accepted the award on
behalf of the foundation. "May the memorial be a beacon of light to
all who dream of flight," Harris said in his acceptance speech.
In a special advance announcement, Ron Kaplan revealed that,
during the NAHF's next annual enshrinement ceremony in June,
Cessna's Russell W. Meyer, Jr. will be officially enshrined into
the NAHF, in recognition of Meyer's historic contributions to the
industry.
The session concluded with a ribbon cutting to open the
Convention by Federal Aviation Administration Acting Administrator
Bobby Sturgell, who thanked NBAA for inviting him to participate in
the show, and said he was pleased to be a part of the event.
In addition to this, Aero-TV covers the following news items in
this program...
Adam Aircraft Acquisition: Jack Braly, President/CEO, AAI
Acquisition Inc.
With the recent acquisition of Adam Aircraft Jack Braly was on
hand after their morning press conference to answer a few
questions.
Ron Lueck: Owner/CEO Comp Air Aviation
Ron Lueck was on hand to discuss the new and upcoming airplanes
from Comp Air, starting with the most recent Comp Air 9 and
continuing on to the Comp Air 12.
Bombardier: David Coleal, VP and GM, Learjet Business
Aircraft
With Bombardier's announcement of the Learjet 85 being built in
Mexico, Aero-TV had a few questions for David Coleal after their
NBAA press conference.
Cessna Columbus Buyer Preview: Jack Pelton, CEO - Cessna
Aircraft Company
Cessna opened up the Columbus mock up at their booth a few hours
early for the customers with deposits on the airplane to take a
look at the interior before it was open to the public. The Columbus
remains on schedule and appears to be taking the aero-world by
storm...
Wichita Aero-Club: Dave Franson, Executive Director of Wichita
Aero Club
A consortium of business, government and educational
organizations in the greater Wichita, Kansas area are joining
together to form the Wichita Aero Club. The club has been patterned
after the Aero Clubs of Washington, Atlanta and The Wings Club in
New York, Dave Franson offered Aero-TV some insights on the future
of the club.
Corporate Angel Network Bets Big Bucks... Courtesy of NBAA
Representatives from the Corporate Angel Network were on hand to
accept a donation from Ed Bolen of NBAA to help support the life
changing efforts of their organization. Ed Bolen was on hand
afterwards to speak on behalf of NBAA.
ANN's Daily Aero-Term (04.14.24): Maximum Authorized Altitude
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