IBGAA business aviation conference takeaways

Last week, the annual IBGAA Business Aviation Conference was held in Shannon, Ireland, and focussed on sustainability, advancing technologies, and the future of business aviation in Ireland. Martin Kennaugh, Client Services Director at Martyn Fiddler Aviation joined a discussion on positioning Ireland to capitalize on future growth – here are his takeaways:

• ESG and sustainability is an ongoing challenge for the business aviation industry and are topics that have taken centre stage at most aviation conferences throughout 2023 – IBGAA was no exception. The business aviation community in Ireland is dedicated to creating a more sustainable industry. In the short term, focus is on the availability and cost of SAF, two important factors affecting its immediate take up and two which will determine the industry’s ability to reduce their environmental impact quickly.
• NBAA presented the innovative ‘Climbing Fast’ campaign, an advocacy initiative aimed at highlighting the industry’s many societal benefits, including its leadership role in sustainability, underscored by a sharp focus on achieving net-zero carbon emissions from flight in years to come. We are all responsible for driving this campaign home to the wider population, showcasing business aviation’s positive impact on employment, connectivity, health care and technological advancement.
• Transformative technologies such as electric aircraft and AI are exciting developments for the industry, but such technologies are still in the early stages of development, meaning it may be years before they are available for use and even longer before we can analyse their positive impact. In the interim we will need to invest in current sustainable developments that are readily accessible to have immediate impact.
• The war for talent continues. The future of business aviation relies on attracting younger generations into the industry. The messages we send out about business aviation need to be redefined. We must make conscious efforts to educate and inform younger generations of the benefits of working in the industry, and the vast range of possible routes of entry by visiting educational establishments and investing into promotional campaigns. To find out more please watch our Talent and Sustainability Webinar.
• In Ireland both the business aviation community and government are keen to capitalise on the future growth of a healthy and robust business aviation sector.  Such a sector has the potential to increase the number of high skilled, high value jobs in the country. Indirectly the industry could also attract high end tourism which would create support roles in tourism, leisure, and hospitality sectors. This growth could potentially influence external investments, enabling Ireland to showcase its economy to a wider circle of international decision makers.

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