Economy and politics dominate NBAA show
At the NBAA media breakfast, held last month at the NBAA Convention, Alan Klapmeier, GAMA chairman (and president and CEO of Cirrus), noted that the credit

At the NBAA media breakfast, held last month at the NBAA Convention, Alan Klapmeier, GAMA chairman (and president and CEO of Cirrus), noted that the credit crunch is a problem for the general economy and for some aircraft sales, but said that productivity is the key to turning the economy around. Adding productivity is what business aviation does best, he said. “Education is needed in the general media to dispel the myth that general aviation is a perk. And personally, I think we should stop using the term ‘private jets.’ That sounds exclusive. We should be using ‘personal jets’ or ‘business jets.’”

Politics took center stage at the Opening General Session of the convention, when association president and CEO Ed Bolen introduced the nation’s most well known political odd couple, Mary Matalin, Republican advisor, and her outspoken husband, Democrat James Carville.