Highlighting the hard-won battle over ATC privatization, technological advances now transforming business aviation, and challenges ahead, “We want to celebrate the present, but we also want to champion the future,” NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen said in welcoming attendees at the General Opening Session of NBAA-BACE 2018 in Orlando.

Bolen reminded attendees “where we were [a year ago] and where we are today” with a video featuring key legislators who cited the impact grassroots efforts organized by NBAA and other aviation associations had in defeating the well-financed privatization lobby. That impact was brought home in the opening remarks of keynote speaker Rep. Ralph Abraham (R-Louisiana), a veterinarian, pilot, and ally in the modernization versus privatization campaign. “I’m here simply to say thank you,” he said. “When you called us and told us your feelings, we listened.” He reminded attendees that while ATC privatization had been defeated for now, “It could raise its head again.”

Acting FAA Administrator Daniel Elwell thanked the community for its involvement in initiatives including the NextGen Advisory Committee and the Aviation Safety Information and Analysis (ASIAS) program. ASIAS, which collects data vital to enhancing safety, now has 82 corporate operators sharing their flight data and tracks more than 1,000 business aircraft, Elwell said. “Business aviation has stepped up. You’ve made it possible for us to raise the safety bar again.” 

The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018, signed into law this month, was the first five-year extension the agency has had since 1982, but Elwell noted, “It doesn’t give us the money to keep the lights on,” and he asked for the business aviation community’s help in securing stable funding for the agency. “When your budget is a political football, it gets way easy to punt, and that’s what’s been happening,” Elwell said. He also urged the community to welcome and integrate commercial space operations and drones into the National Airspace System.

In championing the future, Bolen introduced Eric Allison, head of Uber Aviation, who explained the company’s “urban aviation” model. Uber envisions electric-powered UAS operating from skyports, capable of transporting one million passengers a day in metro areas. Dallas and Los Angeles have signed on as partner cities, and Uber plans to begin demonstration flights of the system in 2020.

Inauguration of commercial service by 2023 “is achievable but ambitious,” Allison, a PhD in aeronautics and astronautics, said. Meanwhile, he added, “We need more partnerships,” creating opportunities for current and future industry stakeholders, including skyport management firms and providers of electrical charging systems.

Also at the opening ceremony, NBAA presented the annual Al Ueltschi Award for Humanitarian Leadership to Sean Tucker and the Bob Hoover Academy for their work with at-risk youth through aviation education and pilot training.