LONDON, 20 July 2004 — The first Middle East aviation pavilion to be seen at any international air show was inaugurated at Farnborough International Air Show in the UK by Saudi and other Arab leaders yesterday.
Participating in the official opening of the pavilion, organized by Dubai air show organizers Fairs & Exhibitions (F&E), were the Kingdom’s Ambassador to the UK Prince Turki Al-Faisal, Royal Jordanian Air Force’s Chief of Air Staff Prince Feisal ibn Al-Hussein, and Dubai’s Department of Civil Aviation President and Emirates Group Chairman Sheikh Ahmed ibn Saeed Al-Maktoum. The Arab leaders toured the pavilion, which houses seven participants from the Kingdom, Lebanon and Dubai.
F&E Chairman Virginia Kern said interest in the launch of Middle East pavilion was so great that it was likely to triple in size for its next appearance — at the Paris air show at Le Bourget next year.
“We’ve already received a number of inquiries for the pavilion in Paris and the success in Farnborough is really going to lift the Middle East aviation industry and definitely puts it firmly on the international aerospace map,” she said.
F&E launched the not-for-profit pavilion initiative to give the regional industry an international share of voice.