LABACE, Latin America’s largest annual business aviation event that was canceled in 2020 due to the pandemic, is poised to return this year, organizer ABAG said yesterday. While the show is normally held in mid-August. ABAG  has pushed it back to November 9 to 11, allowing three more months for Brazil to recover from the pandemic.

The Congonhas Airport has traditionally housed stands in a historic hangar with the door wide open to the static display ramp, which is expected to provide a good setup for social distancing, the show organizer said. With these new dates, however, LABACE will close just three days before the Dubai Airshow opens, which could potentially cause a conflict for some. 

Like other world regions, business aviation in Latin America has been much less severely affected by the pandemic than the airlines, according to a recent analysis by ABAG technical manager Raul Marinho. He views the crisis as having driven new users to private aviation and given new relevancy to air ambulance services. Marinho also sees new Brazilian ANAC rules allowing per-seat charter and, soon, regulating shared ownership as all boosting business aviation.

Brazil’s agribusiness sector, which is export-oriented and dollar-based, has also weathered the crisis well and is historically a strong aircraft purchaser.