The trailblazers, trends and technologies that are redefining the future of air travel came together for the 2024 European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (EBACE2024) – marked by the world debut of new aircraft and other exciting industry firsts.
“EBACE2024 made clear that business aviation is spearheading a surge of innovation that will drive economic growth and enable a future of net-zero flight,” said European Business Aviation Association (EBAA) Secretary General Holger Krahmer. “Our industry is a testbed for new technologies, and remains crucial for connecting people.”
EBACE2024 spotlighted some of the world’s most cutting-edge and efficient aircraft, including pistons, turboprops, intercontinental jets and business helicopters – some newly unveiled, others making their EBACE debut, and others new to full, international certification. Advanced air mobility (AAM) also featured prominently at EBACE, including an AAM vehicle on the show’s aircraft display for the first time, and an indoor lineup with game-changing electric, hybrid and hydrogen aircraft.
Convention-goers affirmed that EBACE is the industry’s essential marketplace in Europe. The chair of the International Aircraft Dealers Association (IADA), which brought a 50-member delegation to the show, called EBACE2024 “the place to be if you are buying and selling airplanes internationally.”
EBACE keynote crowds were inspired by Swiss aviation pioneer and climate campaigner Dr. Bertrand Piccard, the initiator and chairman of the Solar Impulse Foundation, who in 2016 circumnavigated the globe in a solar-powered airplane. Piccard announced his plans to advance carbon-free flight by next flying around the world in an aircraft powered entirely by hydrogen.
“Business aviation is an industry filled with promise and powered by ingenuity,” said NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen. “EBACE2024 exemplified the best in our industry: invention, collaboration, freedom of movement and the drive to sustainably soar ever higher. We are ‘CLIMBING. FAST.’”
The EBACE week included a number of other highlights. For example:
- Top executives from Airbus Corporate Jets, Boeing Business Jets, Dassault Aviation, Embraer Executive Jets and Textron Aviation came together on one stage for an EBACE pre-show Newsmakers Luncheon to focus on the industry’s unified commitment to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
- Government leaders took to the EBACE keynote stage to detail the industry’s importance as an essential sector and effective partner to policymakers in the region. John Santurbano, director of the Maastricht Upper Area Control Centre for EUROCONTROL, previewed strategies to lower emissions with more efficient routing through airspace. Delphine Bachmann, state councilor in charge of the Department of Economy & Labour for Geneva, called EBACE “a unique opportunity to strengthen collaboration between all the members of the value chain of the industry.”
- Business aviation’s global mission to reach net zero by 2050 was underscored with EBAA joining the CLIMBING. FAST. advocacy initiative, marking a first-of-its-kind trans-Atlantic partnership that will champion the industry’s leadership with policymakers.
- The program was anchored by a three-day EBACE Business Aviation Sustainability Summit focusing on ways to accelerate business aviation’s path to net zero. Emissions-reducing sustainable aviation fuel was available at Geneva Airport and exhibitors minimized their carbon footprint at the show through the Exhibitor Sustainability Pledge.
- EBAA launched a set of proprietary standards aligned with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. The Standards & Training for Aviation Responsibility and Sustainability (S.T.A.R.S.) program helps organizations seamlessly develop and integrate environmental and social strategies.
- Delegates from Europe’s leading business aviation companies joined with technical students to focus on forging connections between tomorrow’s talent and today’s industry mentors.
“This year’s EBACE, my first, has been phenomenal,” Krahmer said. “The energy, progress and dedication we’ve seen here highlight the excellence of business aviation, and the immense value our industry brings to Europe. From fostering economic growth, to connecting communities, business aviation is indispensable.”
EBACE will return to Palexpo and Geneva Airport next year from 20-22 May 2025.
