By almost any measure NBAA’s annual convention, held September 10 to 12 in Orlando, Fla., can be considered a rousing success. Against the backdrop of heightened terror warnings, a call for tough new United Nations resolutions on Iraq, continued economic uncertainty and a day of emotional ceremonies across the nation to com- memorate the victims of September 11, the business aviation industry gathered to take its collective pulse, and–to the relief of the more than 27,000 professional visitors attending the show–discovered that it still had one.
According to NBAA officials, post-show figures for the convention confirm that attendance peaked at a surprising 27,785 visitors (that compares with an all-time record high for attendance of 30,106 in 1998), while a record-breaking 1,011 individual exhibitors occupied some 900,000 sq ft of booth space on the sprawling Orange County Convention Center floor.
