International Business Aviation Council director general Kurt Edwards welcomed attendees to the MEBAA Show on Tuesday, expressing enthusiasm about the return of the three-day event after a four-year, Covid-induced hiatus and stressing that it was time for “setting the record straight.”

“It is so exciting to be back here after four years and I'm really glad to see this turnout. I'm glad to see the number of exhibitors here,” Edwards said kicking off the series of panel sessions MEBAA is hosting on the show floor.

The show is providing a forum for the industry to discuss challenges, opportunities business models, financing, regulations, and a range of other pressing issues, he said.

Edwards said one such key issue is sustainability, adding, “[The industry has] been getting a lot of [negative] press in this area recently” and it's an issue “we are going to face one way or another.”

Industry needs to change the prevailing perception because it “has been striving for sustainability for years. We all want to be more fuel efficient. We all want to use less fuel. We all want to burn less fuel. We've been doing that now for decades. Our industry is very innovative.”

He pointed to innovations specific to business aviation, as well as efforts such as commitments to net-zero carbon emissions, and noted that the International Civil Aviation Organization largely adopted a roadmap led by industry.