2023-06-19 11:08:59
INTERVIEW – The 54th edition innovates with the first major exhibition of flying taxis and welcomes 300 start-ups. The General Commissioner of the Paris Air Show details the new features and the challenges.
LE FIGARO. – How does the 2023 edition of the Paris Air Show look like?
Patrick DAHER. – The Gifas (1), which organizes the show, had been forced to cancel the 2021 edition, due to the Covid-19 crisis. It has therefore been four years since the great aeronautics family met north of Paris. The time seemed very long to us! We feel the enthusiasm of the sector to make this edition a great celebration. Everyone is at the rendezvous. 85 of the world’s top 100 aeronautical companies responded. Le Bourget is a business-oriented show but also open to the general public during the weekend. It remains the largest air show in the world, far ahead of its successor, Farnborough in the United Kingdom.
Are there any absentees? We imagine that Russia is persona non grata…
We received several “timid” requests from Russian companies but we closed the door. Russia, which attacked Ukraine, and which is under sanction, is excluded. On the other hand, a Ukrainian representation is present at the show. For a time, we feared that the Chinese could not come. Registrations started in September 2022 but we had no Chinese manufacturers on our lists. Until January, it was impossible for them to travel. As soon as the “zero Covid” policy was lifted, we saw an influx of requests. The Chinese are indeed present.
What themes are highlighted?
We picked three. First, the aeronautics festival and the passion it arouses. We also celebrate music on June 21 and organize, during the weekend, fun events with escape games and e-sport tournaments. Recruitment is also a red thread of the show, with the Careers Plane, organized with industrial partners and their employees. And with the “Aero is recruiting” campaign, rolled out on all the stands with mobilized HR teams. The sector aims to recruit 25,000 people this year. The third theme is essential: it is that of decarbonization, around three events. First with the “Start-Me-Up” area, dedicated to 300 start-ups from around the world. This is unheard of. Next, the first major exhibition of electric and hybrid flying taxis ever. Last but not least, the Paris Air Lab, where all the players in decarbonization present the state of their research.
The plane is a kid’s dream! It is a French passion. Especially in a country that has the oldest aeronautical industry in the world
Patrick Therefore
The sector is committed to net zero emissions by 2050. A horizon still far away…
We are immersed in a proliferation of ideas and innovation. Aeronautics already has a clear idea of the technologies it will use to achieve the objective of carbon neutrality. There is nothing insurmountable. Excluding sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), which will contribute up to 30% of the decarbonization objective, we should see the first small electric or hybrid aircraft in operation by 2027. These will be flying club aircraft, small business jets and 15 to 20 seat commuters. Hydrogen-powered medium-haul aircraft demonstrators should fly by 2035.
Has aeronautics turned the page on the health crisis?
Commercially, demand is strong and the sector has returned to or even exceeded its 2019 level, as evidenced by the resumption of orders from Airbus and Boeing. The long-term trend is positive. On the industrial level, the succession of crises – Covid-19, war in Ukraine, inflation, tension on raw materials, energy costs, etc. – has disrupted the ecosystem of global subcontractors. This makes it difficult to increase production rates. In addition there are tensions on the job market, which concern France, Europe and North America.
Read alsoLe Bourget, an air show of all challenges
Is the attractiveness of aeronautics undermined by “plane-bashing”?
I do not believe that. The plane is a kid’s dream! It is a French passion. Especially in a country that has the oldest aeronautical industry in the world. And which, with Airbus, is the world leader in commercial aviation. The plane-bashing phenomenon is in the minority in Europe where an overwhelming majority of young people favor the plane as a means of transport and escape. Outside the developed countries, the plane is a dream. Especially in Africa and Asia. But it is true that the “rich countries” have overconsumed. The time for some moderation may have come and certainly the time to invest in decarbonizing. Aeronautics is the sector that has already made the most effort for decades. Aviation accounts for only 2.5% of man-made CO2 emissions. But we have to do better. Manufacturers are all aligned with the goal of net zero emissions. As such, this show is the first in the world to be that of decarbonization.
(1) Group of French aeronautical and space industries.
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