Singapore Airshow: stifled by pandemic, but a sign aviation’s recovery has ‘finally started’?

This year’s event paled in comparison with previous iterations, as it had no public open days and fewer exhibitors taking part

But it still served as a much-needed platform for aviation leaders to meet physically amid signs of a recovery for the industry

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The Indonesian Air Force’s Jupiter Aerobatic Team takes part in an aerial display during the Singapore Airshow on February 15. Photo: AP

Published: 11:00am, 20 Feb 2022Updated: 11:19am, 20 Feb 2022

Compared to past editions, this year’s Singapore Airshow was a markedly muted affair.

The biennial event – held since 2008 – has typically been among the most highly anticipated aviation trade fairs in the region, with aircraft and weapons manufacturers, airline executives, officers and industry experts all descending for a week onto a vast hanger near Changi Airport.

Ascendant airlines have in the past used the event to announce their arrival on the scene. At the 2012 edition, for example, Indonesia’s Lion Air grabbed the spotlight as it finalised a US$22 billion order for 230 planes with Boeing – the US aircraft manufacturer’s biggest-ever commercial aircraft deal at the time.

Visitors look at a model of a passenger jet in the Airbus pavilion at Singapore Airshow on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters

This year’s event paled in comparison as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to weigh on the scale at which these mega trade shows can be held safely.

Some 600 exhibitors took part in this year’s edition – held from Tuesday to Friday – a significant drop from 930 in 2020.

Public days – often a hit among resident families with young children who would perch themselves on the fighter jets on static display – were also called off due to the pandemic.