HELI-EXPO 2004 Surpassed Expectations

It was pretty obvious, to those of us at ANN, by the afternoon of the first day of Heli-Expo 2004, that something very good was happening, where the civil helicopter industry gathered in Las Vegas, Nevada, March 15 through 17. By the second day, we suspected record attendnace and activity. Now we find that our suspicions have been confirmed. The 2004 HELI-EXPO convention and exposition was a success, surpassing expectations. The exhibit hall was filled with attendees exploring the vast array of helicopters, avionics, engines, aviation products, and services.

Breaking previous records, 15,152 attendees of HELI-EXPO 2004 enjoyed various exhibits. This year at HELI-EXPO, 486 companies were present across 178,700 net sq. ft. in the Las Vegas Convention Center. Attendees and exhibitors were pleased with the size and quality of the crowd.

“I have not seen this much enthusiasm at a HELI-EXPO in 15 years. On the first day, when the doors closed and the lights were being shut off, exhibitors were still talking about how wonderful the day went. The excitement is back,” said Patricia Butler, Manager of Promotion and Tradeshows at Bell Helicopter Textron, Inc.

Exhibitors reported high levels of activity at booths, and vendors were able to interact with thousands of consumers on the floor. HAI committee meetings and educational seminars were well attended. Also, members took advantage of networking being conducted extensively throughout the convention.

“The shows keep getting better every year. We were able to uncover our S-92 this year at HELI-EXPO and that made the show for us. This HELI-EXPO really doubled our expectations…on everything,” said Sheena Steiner, Media Relations Manager of Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation.

HELI-EXPO 2005 will be in Anaheim, California, February 6-8. HAI is the professional trade association for the civil helicopter industry. Its 1,350-plus-member organizations and 1,150 individual members, in more than 73 nations, safely operate more than 4,500 helicopters approximately 2.3 million hours each year. HAI is dedicated to the promotion of the helicopter as a safe, effective method of commerce and to the advancement of the civil helicopter industry.

FMI: www.rotor.com