Airliner World – April 2018

NEWS OF record aircraft orders and
all-time spending highs has become
something of the norm for the world’s
major aerospace events in recent years.
But for the 2018 Singapore Airshow,
the trade element of which was held at
the Changi Exhibition Centre between
February 6 and 9, the pace was rather
more subdued.
The biennial event, the biggest of its kind
in Asia, has not traditionally been a ‘big
hitter’ as far as sales are concerned – the
52 commercial orders lodged in 2016
was only marginally more than the 41
posted two years earlier. And, coming
barely three months after the mammoth
Dubai Airshow, during which $113bn of
orders and commitments were made –
including 430 A320 Family aircraft
from Indigo Partners and 40 787-10s
for Emirates – this year’s Singapore
Airshow lacked any real pre-event hype.
Even then, announcements were thin on
the ground.

The industry maintains Asia is a key

market that will see unprecedented

growth over the next two decades, a

point reinforced in numerous forecasts

presented during the show. However, the

paucity of deals suggests carriers in the

region are wary of further fleet expansion

amid concerns of oversupply and excess

capacity in the short- to medium-term.

These reservations were mirrored by the

major aircraft manufacturers. The flying

display – marred on the opening day of

the show by the crash of a KAI T-50 of

the Republic of Korea Air Force’s Black

Eagles aerobatic team during take-off

from nearby Changi airport – was bereft

of any commercial aircraft. The static

park was well attended and included

Embraer’s E190 E2 with its tiger-inspired

‘Profit Hunter’ livery, a Bombardier

CS300 of airBaltic and Cessna’s new

Latitude and Longitude

business jets, but several

aerospace giants were

conspicuous by their absence. Among

them Boeing, which showcased a variety

of military types but none of its current

airliner portfolio. Airbus’ attendance,

meanwhile, was limited to A350-

testbed F-WLXV (c/n 065), which was

in the region as part of a three-week

12-stop demonstration tour of the Middle

East and Asia/Pacific.

Significantly, neither manufacturer

announced any orders in Singapore.

Instead, it was Toulouse-based ATR that

made the headlines. The Franco-Italian

firm did not present an aircraft at the

event, but it did disclose two separate

deals, trumping many of its rivals in the

process. This consisted of a $100m

commitment for four 70-seat ATR

72-600s from Bangkok Airways, while it

also placed two pre-owned ATR 42-500s

with Berjaya Hotels & Resorts, which will

use the aircraft to launch air services

from Kuala Lumpur to Malaysia’s Redang

Island (see News Asia/Pacific).

Remarkably, the biggest deal of the

Singapore Airshow was not for

With aircraft orders rather thin on the ground, the focus at this year’s Singapore Airshow

was very much on ancillary products and services. Airliner World’s Craig West reports.

Bombardier's enclosure included airBaltic CS300 YL-CSG (c/n 55009) and Dash 8-Q

RP-C5906 (c/n 4569) operated by Philippine Airlines offshoot PAL Express.

.

16 AIRLINER WORLD APRIL 2018

News Review • A s i a / P a c i fi c

Singapore

on Show