AEROMEDIA
The Italian Aerospace Information Web
by Aeromedia - corso Giambone 46/18 - 10135 Torino (Italy)


Preview 44th Paris Air Show

After the press preview on Saturday, June 16, the 44th Paris Air Show will take place at Le Bourget airport from Sunday, June 17 to June 24, 2001. The show will be open to the general public on June 17, 23 and 24. The other days are reserved for professionals.
Considering the large number of mergers and acquisitions carried out in the last couple of years, more than 1,700 exhibitors have already booked a stand at the show: a figure only slightly inferior to that of 1999. 43 countries will be represented in 2001, compared to 41 in 1999, now including Belarus, Georgia and North Ireland. Business chalets will be no less than 505, an increase of 8.6%.

 

Airbus and Boeing will fight their usual commercial battle. The Air Show will be also the loudspeaker for possible events like the final agreement between Finmeccanica and EADS, or the sale of 229 A 400M military transporters (ex FLA) to the seven countries involved in the programme.
217 aircraft will be exhibed, including very new models like Airbus A 340-600 and Boeing B.737-900, both making their first public display. Other significant exhibits will include Global Hawk UAV (coming in flight directly from the USA), the B-2 stealth bomber, the new Zeppelin N 07 airship, the recoverable stage of the Baikal rocket and the top of Ariane V missile.
But probably the 2001 Paris Air Show will be remembered for the return of the largest winged object in the world, the leviathan six-engine Antonov An-225, just restored to flying condition.

In the pictures: Antonov An-225 Mriya CCCP-82060, was exhibed at the 1989 Paris Air Show, seven months after its maiden flight. The Buran space shuttle mock-up was carried piggy-back on the Mriya; the Buran programme was later cancelled and consequently the 300-tons payload aircraft was grounded
Scaled Composites Proteus N281PR, a high-ceiling long endurance experimental aircraft, highlighted the 1999 Paris Air Show (photo by Aeromedia)

(Aeromedia, May 2001)