AERO Friedrichshafen this week will open its doors to the world general aviation community for the 30th time as an independent exhibition.
Beginning as a gathering of only 14 exhibitors as part of a motor expo in 1977, AERO spun off to become independent in 1993, and this year will host 680 GA companies from 36 countries.
It is now the largest annual purely general aviation expo in the world.
Opening tonight and running for four days, AERO's home is at Friedrichshafen on the German shores of Lake Constance, where manufacturers and companies showcase innovations and new products from the entire sector, including gliders, recreational and GA aircraft right through to business jets.
The location at Friedrichshafen Airport also enables visitors to fly-in themselves.
It becomes the place to be in April every year, with almost all GA manufacturers around the world having some form of presence in the over 95,000 m2 of exhibition space; Tecnam, Textron, Piper, Cirrus, Diamond, Pipistrel, Daher, David Clark, Garmin, Bell and Leonardo are among those that have booked space.
They come every year to show off new products and technology to an audience that ranges from hobby and private flyers up to highly-qualified professionals. According to trade show surveys, more than 60% of all visitors hold one or more pilot licenses.
What you won't find is much in the way of airlines, military or warbirds; AERO is purely general aviation, which is currently on an upward trajectory as it recovers from the COVID years. AERO itself was canceled due to COVID in 2020 and 2021.
"Aviation has proven to be extremely resilient in recent years and is currently experiencing an upswing," said AERO director Tobias Bretzel.
"From this strong position, it is preparing for the challenges of the future by driving forward technologies that enable low-emission or emission-free flying.
"At the anniversary AERO, exhibitors will be showcasing several aircraft with alternative propulsion systems, some of which are already certified or will be certified in the next few years. Visitors can see these advances for themselves at the AERO."
Among the state-of-the-future technology expected to be on show over the next four days are:
- the fully electric powered eDA40 from Diamond Aircraft Industries
- the Junkers A50 Heritage ultralight aircraft that has been reconstructed true to an original design from the 1920s.
- Belgian-Czech manufacturer JMB Aircraft's new Phoenix motor glider
- the Chinese Ruien Aircraft Industry RX-1E-S electric aircraft,
- the Integral E electric aircraft from French company Aura Aero
- Piper Aircraft's new flagship, the Piper M700 FURY single-engine turbo-prop aircraft
- a "Turbulence Cancelling System" from Czech company Shark.Aero to reduce gusts.
Such is the importance of AERO to the world-wide GA industry that most manufacturers will present new technology and products, many to be announced for the first time at the show.
AERO Friedrichshafen starts tonight Australian time and runs through to Saturday. More information is on the exhibition website.