38 | MAGAZINE^02

LATIN AMERICA,

A MORE MATURE MARKET

With the debut of the KC-390, the International Air & Space Fair in Chile

shows that the region is no longer merely seen as emergent

T

he International Air &

Space Fair (FIDAE for its

acronym in Spanish) is a

biennial business event

addressing the air and de-

fense sector that takes place in Chile.

he irst edition, in 1980, commemo-

rated the 50 years of Chile’s Airforce,

but its success has led to the creation

of an international event. Since then,

every two years manufacturers and

air forces mark presence in the fair,

in search of new partnerships, trade

agreements or just strengthening

links in the region. Still far from the

potential and power of traditional

events such as Farnborough or Le

Bourget, or even the newcomers Sin-

gapore Air Show and Dubai Air Show,

FIDAE has consolidated itself as an

aviation showcase for Latin America,

although it has been losing ground in

the area of defense to LAAD Defense

& Securty in Rio de Janeiro. In this

20th edition of the event, 120,000

people went through Pudahuel Air

Base, at Arturo Benitez International

Airport, in the capital city Santiago,

where there were 120 exposed air-

crats and over 500 exhibitors.

MORE PILOTS

Fidae’s story coincides with Airbus’

progress in Latin America. his year,

the European consortium has com-

memorated the consolidation of its

leading position in the region, beating

Boeing. In 2017 Airbus has registered

orders for 209 aircrats and beat its

previous record of 100 orders, regis-

tered three times in 2015, 2011 and

2012. According to the manufacturer,
      the fact demonstrates the increasing
      importance of the region for Airbus’
      global businesses. “For Airbus, we
      do not any longer consider Latin
      America and Caribbean an “emerging
      market” for the aviation. It has al-
      ready emerged”, stated Rafael Alonso
      president of Airbus Latin America
      and Caribbean.
      During the FIDAE, Airbus also
      presented its Global Market Forecast
      for Latin America addressing the
      2017-2036 period. Publicized last
      year, the study foresees the necessity
      of 2,677 aircrats in the next 20 years.
      Among the factors driving this de-
      mand, states the study, are the passen-
      ger traic, which will grow at the rate
      of 4.4 percent per year, as well as the

FIDAE 2018