Against a backdrop of falling fuel prices and steadily increasing flight activity, NBAA will kick off its 26th annual Schedulers and Dispatchers Conference on Tuesday at the McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, Calif. The price of crude oil has tumbled by 55 percent over the past year and the resulting downstream pressure on aviation fuel and its effects on the service provider industry is sure to be one of the prevailing topics of discussion at S&D 2015, which is anticipated have more than 450 exhibitors and 2,500 attendees.

With safety and emergency preparedness the focus of this year’s show and a format extending to four days for the first time, one highlight will be a second-day general session featuring a live 90-minute crash scenario drill on stage with 10 roleplayers, ATC audio clips and video segments. “There is a part of the job that every scheduler and dispatcher must be prepared for, yet rarely talks about,” said Jo Damato, NBAA’s director of educational development and strategy. “If there’s an aircraft accident or incident, they’ll be the first to know and on the front line of the company’s response to protect its people and reputation.”



AIN will be providing live coverage from the show on AINonline. Exhibitors can send news announced at S&D to Curt Epstein.