Le Bourget, France sets the scene for the 45^th Paris Air Show. The Paris Air Show is undoubtedly the most electrifying and elaborate occurrence on this year's airshow calendar. Unfortunately this year's show bears the brunt of the overwhelming impact of the accumulation of three tragic events still hanging over the troubled industry. Withdrawing myself from any such depressive thoughts I visited the show with high expectations, I wasn't disappointed...

With the extreme temperatures beating down on Paris any English speaking outlander deserved a pat on the back for even making it out of the concrete jungle otherwise known as 'Gare De Nord' station. Praise, however, must be given where it's due and the special bus service, laid on by the shows organisers, quickly and efficiently deposited you at the entrance gate, which was a welcome sight for all. The Show is set out with five indoor halls of exhibitors, divided into countries, and an outdoor area for the static aircraft. Outside was also, unsurprisingly, the best place to view the air displays! It was soon clear that everybody was here from the companies that construct aircraft down to the component that ensures when you flush the toilet in the air everyone knows about it!

Two tasks I wanted to complete were to visit the arch rivals Airbus and Boeing. Making your way through the mass of exhibitors to find the one you are searching for seemed neither straightforward nor pleasant. Passing General Electric's impressive stand you didn't need to be a genius or need binoculars to realize you were approaching a company with importance. I was soon to realize in the overwhelming crowd that I was one of a small minority who wasn't visiting Airbus just for 'freebies', a word that seemed to cover all languages with the simple holding out of the hand. It's not long before you notice how misplaced Oliver Twist was when he used his polite "please".

Airbus

The currently joint EADS/BAE Systems owned company Airbus was, without doubt, the talk of the week. Airbus announced securing 81 orders worth $19.8 billion before the week was out, a major blow to their American competitors Boeing. The extravagant stand the company possessed, which included two full sized cabins and various models including the A380, attracted huge crowds. The company's future success may well have been placed in the hands of the new fuel efficient double decker A380. So far it looks as if their gamble may pay off, during the week the company promised to have an A380 flying at the next Paris Air Show in 2005.

Of course a company that sells aircraft were not going to spend the weekend sitting on the ground and as promised at 13:42 the A318, which is expected to enter service later this year, thundered down the runway. Seeing an airliner takeoff at 100% thrust and soar into an almost vertical climb while performing a tight bank isn't something you'd expect to see every day at Heathrow, which made this in itself a truly unique and remarkable sight. Not long after, while the A318 was still circling in the skies above, its larger relation the A340-600 took to the air, sporting its 'Longer, Larger, Further, Higher, Smoother, Quieter' livery. This display was possibly even more astonishing due to the sheer size of the A340 on comparison to the A318, yet its mobility seemed uncompromised and its powerful Rolls Royce engines performed every turn, climb or dive that the pilot requested without a single groan. An amazing display showing what an aircraft such as these can do if allowed to show its true colours.

A little later in the afternoon the jet fighters were out, these included the BAE Systems Hawk 100, Saab Gripen and, of course, the Eurofighter Typhoon. By this time the heat had overpowered many and people packed under the fuselage of any accessible aircraft they could find, to give some relief from the sweltering heat released from the dazzling sun. Squinting eyes I managed to watch the displays and, for me, the highlight had to be the brilliant Eurofighter, afterburners blazing and ear splitting sound that made the ground rumble. Split-S, loop-the-loop, spins, the Eurofighter did them all with grace and style which is odd terms to be used for a nippy fighter jet. We then made our way over to Boeing...

Boeing

The American Boeing company were somewhat left licking their wounds during the week, after rival Airbus stole the show with an unprecedented number of orders and profit. This didn't tell the whole story though and Boeing are far from letting Airbus walk away victoriously without a battle. Boeing choose to do things in style at this years show and that was obvious when approaching their custom designed dedicated Boeing exhibit building. Parked outside was Boeing's new extended range triple seven, the 777-300ER. The 777-300ER made its first flight in February 2003 and is expected to enter service late next year. Boeing promises it to be a major contender against the A340, flying "farther and faster" than its European counterpart. Without a doubt the aircraft is a beauty and sports Boeing's new World Map livery which personally I would like to see become Boeing's standard house livery for future aircraft. The aspect of the aircraft that seemed to be drawing the biggest crowd of photographers, including me, was the engines. These humongous General Electric beasts weigh over 18,000 lbs and already hold a world record for producing nearly 123,000 lbs of thrust.

Boeing had a very good system of making people queue to get into the exhibition and only allowing a certain number in at any given time. However this did not resolved the problem of people grabbing as many Boeing bug freebies as they could and shovelling them into their already bulging bags. Boeing's exhibition had a very space age feel to it with vibrant colours ranging from dark blue to bright pink. This made me realize something.

It would appear Boeing is looking ahead to the future and changing the way they think about things and why not? Remember we are in the year 2003, ten years ago scientists around the globe promised flying cars and slave robots by the year 2000. When was the last time you jumped into your Ford Flyable or had dinner served by a machine? This becomes all too apparent as you approach the Boeing 7E7 "Dreamliner" model. People stand back in shock as it changes everything that has remained unchanged for at least the past 25 years, the shape, the design, the windscreen! After the initial shock people begin to wonder about the sight of one of these dolphin shaped transporters taking to the sky and probably think "I'd like to fly in one of those!"...

Two companies, Airbus and Boeing, with conflicting views. While Boeing maybe scaring off current aviation companies by looking to the future with radical new ideas it may pay off for Boeing in the long run. Dreams such as the "Dreamliner" can only be a good thing and Boeing has an excellent range to fall back on if the aircraft never leaves the drawing board. If it does leave the drawing board then it may give the aviation industry a new refreshing boost that is so badly needed during such troubled times.

The only disappointment of the air show was the concluding day. By the time we had arrived it was clear that nearly all the exhibitors had packed up ready to head back to their home lands, I thought this was an outrage considering much of the public would have paid their hard earned money to take their families to see the final day of the show.

The show closed with the, claimed, largest aircraft of the show gracefully taking to the skies. The Airbus A340 slowly disappeared into the hazy horizon leaving some visitors questioning how things would be at the next Paris Air Show in 2005, while others made a mad dash for the bus!

A very enjoyable show that was more than worth the hassle endured during the trip to the event and perhaps things aren't as bad for Boeing as it appears on the surface. Still questions remain, will we see an A380 landing at Le Bourget in two years time? Will Mr Branson save Concorde? Will Boeing have started or scraped the 7E7 project? Only time will tell...

Other Shows

If this article has left you feeling left out then here are a few other International air shows that might interest you.

18-20^th July -- The Royal International Air Tattoo shouldn't be missed, celebrating 100 years of flight and will be held later this month at RAF Fairford in the UK. Hosting an impressive fleet of aircraft, flying and static, from the AAC, RAF, RN & RNHF, ranging from the Lancaster through to the Jaguar and the Eurofighter Tycoon. For a full list of participators and show details visit:

www.airtattoo.intheuk.com

19-24^th August -- MAKS International Aviation & Space Salon are boosting of having "the largest air show in the world", true or untrue it takes place next month, visit:

www.maks.ru

30^th August -- 1^st September -- Canada also celebrate 100 years of flight in Toronto with a range of military aircraft from the F-15 to the Spitfire. More details can be found by visiting:

www.cias.org

19-25^th July 2004 -- Farnborough 2004, why not plan in advance? Farnborough is perhaps the only other International Air Show at the same level as Paris and takes place next year in the UK, visit: www.farnborough.com

A full list of National & International Air Shows can be found at:

www.flightinternational.com

David Bayliss

oasts@btopenworld.com

Airbus - www.airbus.com

BAE Systems - www.baesystems.com

Boeing - www.boeing.com

EADS - www.eads.com

General Electric Engines - www.geae.com