Singapore Airshow 2012 Attracts Record Visitors To Biggest Edition Ever

By Tengku Noor Shamsiah Tengku Abdullah SINGAPORE, Feb 20 (Bernama) -- Singapore Airshow, Asia’s largest and one of the three most important aerospace and defence exhibitions in the world, drew a record number of trade and public visitors at this year’s edition of the biennial event. Over the six-day show from Feb 14 till Sunday, Singapore Airshow 2012 welcomed some 145,000 visitors from 128 countries. The event also played host to the largest ever number of top level delegations, with 266 from over 80 countries. Jimmy Lau, Managing Director of Experia Events, organiser of event, said: "Singapore Airshow 2012 has been a success for everyone. We have set a new record for the value of deals announced, as well as the number of visitors on both trade and public days. "As a testament to the show’s achievements, over 70 percent of exhibitors had already reaffirmed their commitment to take up exhibition space in 2014. We are looking forward to the next show and hope to deliver a more enhanced experience in 2014. Tickets for the public day weekend over Saturday and Sunday, were completely sold out, and Changi Exhibition Centre, the Airshow site, saw some 100,000 visitors over the two days, swamping the grounds where they were treated to breathtaking aerial displays and had the opportunity to view an impressive array of aircraft in static display. The aerial display included show-stopping performances from Singapore Air Force (RSAF), the Royal Malaysian Air Force “Smokey Bandits”, the United States Air Force and the Royal Australian Air Force “Roulettes”. Australian pilot Tony Blair of Blair Aerosports also made his debut in the first stunt aerobatic performance in the history of airshows in Singapore. In addition, visitors had a chance to interact with the aerial display pilots in person during autograph and photo-taking sessions. Singapore Airlines also hosted guided tours on one of their last three remaining Boeing 747-400s, which was here at Singapore Airshow to commemorate the retirement of its B747 fleet. -- BERNAMA