Third European Rotors Show Underlines Event’s Potential

With the focus in recent years on electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles (eVTOLS), it appears that the helicopter industry is facing an era of significant change and disruption. While the jury is out on how eVTOLs and helicopters (as well as unmanned aerial vehicles, UAVs) will share infrastructure both on the ground and in the air, a wider aviation sector looks and wonders how to prepare itself.

The aviation data industry is no different, and those that rely on the airport data provided by AC-U-KWIK and Airportdata.com will increasingly appreciate heliport and ‘vertiport’ data. It was with this in mind that we decided to attend the third European Rotors annual event in Madrid, Spain, November 27-30, 2023 (the first day was the EASA Rotorcraft and VTOL Safety Symposium, followed by the three main European Rotors show days).

European Rotors was born out of the desire of the industry and regulators to have a single, high-profile event for the helicopter and VTOL/emerging VTOL sectors in Europe. Initially led by the European Helicopter Association (EHA) and held in Cologne in 2021 and 2022, for the 2023 event the US-based Helicopter Association International (HAI) became involved in co-organizing the event. As such, it acts as the world’s second-largest helicopter show and the sister show of HAI Heli-Expo in the US, the next edition of which will take place Feb. 27-29, 2024, in Anaheim, California.

Holding European Rotors in late 2021 was a brave step coming not long after Covid lockdowns and in fact, a re-tightening of restrictions took place just after the event. Those that went seemed to find it worthwhile, though, and looking back with 2022 and 2023 becoming increasingly busy, Europe does now have a major helicopter show again.

The show came against a backdrop of continued progress (some may call it “hype”) in the eVTOL arena, though this is also driven partly by increasing pressure for sustainability/sustainable transport – and COP 28 followed straight after the conference, in Dubai. However, European Rotors has yet to see an influx of eVTOL visitors prompting many to reflect on it being almost a ‘different industry’.

The question of how the industries will co-exist and affect each other is not clear for now, but it would be a shame if infrastructure could not be shared to the maximum safe extent. There is no doubt that ground infrastructure and airspace will have to be shared, however, even if heliports are for helicopters and vertiports are for eVTOLs. Or perhaps some heliports will have an eVTOL dock, and vice versa. Noise and pollution concerns will also dictate whether eVTOLs become ‘de rigeur’ while helicopters are shunned from the city environment.

Regulation is also progressing and as the 2023 show got underway, EASA had recently issued a formal opinion to the European Commission on eVTOL operations covering operations, vertiport design, and airspace. This is due to lead to consideration by the European Parliament and eventually will lead to legislation to add to existing unmanned aircraft and wider aviation legislation.

Organizers Pleased

In the words of the organizers, “Enthusiastic attendees and exhibitors found the show in Madrid offered something for everyone. European Rotors 2023 closed the doors on a highly successful event … spurred by Industry growth and an exciting new host city.

“The show featured educational opportunities, career development, safety demonstrations, and presentations and displays on exciting new technologies within the vertical flight industry. The four-day show, organized by the European Helicopter Association (EHA), European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), and produced by Helicopter Association International (HAI), saw growth over last year’s show in the number of attendees and exhibitors,” said a show official.

Though the extent of this growth was not quantified, the significantly decreased gaps between generally larger stands tended to suggest an upward trend – and it was certainly busy on the first day, especially for around three hours in the middle of the day – though audience levels petered out slightly on Day 2 and 3, naturally. The seminar program on three stages proved popular along with the several helicopters (and an eHang eVTOL) that exhibitors brought along.

The organizers revealed that attendance at the show was over 5,400 people from more than 80 countries. “Both figures exceeded participation in the first two shows,” they said. “The show also saw growth in the number of exhibitors (231) and the number of aircraft displayed on the show floor (23).

“We are proud that the European community recognizes this is the premier rotorcraft event in the region,” says Eduardo Consejo, president, Asociación de Trabajos Aéreos y de Emergencias (ATAIRE), the Spanish Helicopter Association hosting the event. “We understand the exhibitors were extremely pleased with the quality of visitors coming to see them, including those qualified to sign agreements on the spot. One of the goals of the show is to facilitate business between companies and buyers, and the data shows that the Madrid show met that challenge.”

During the opening ceremony, outgoing EHA chair Christian Müller announced that European Rotors 2024 will be held in Amsterdam, Netherlands, 4-7 November. “One of our roles at EHA is to promote our vibrant industry throughout all European regions and countries,” said Isabella Abbate, executive director of EHA. “Holding the shows in different locations occasionally allows us to support and highlight the dynamic ways our industry serves the people of Europe.”

The organizers claimed that interest in the 2024 location “proved high, with early on-site booth reservations exceeding the number of commitments for booths at last year’s show.

“Amsterdam has everyone excited about the possibilities of a new venue, just as what happened when we announced Madrid’s location last year,” said Abbate. “In the future, we will continue to hold shows in Cologne, home of EASA, but providing other venues allows us to bring business engagement to new levels.”

While looking forward to the 2024 show, Abbate also praised the host country for their contributions to its success in Madrid. “Our friends at ATAIRE were instrumental in the success of this year’s show. “They were truly excited to introduce their country and industry to the rest of the helicopter industry, and we are sincerely grateful for their work to make this show so successful”.

“One of the reasons we chose to bring the show to Spain is because of the strength of the rotorcraft industry there,” added Abbate. “Our assessment proved to be correct, as their contributions included a significant presence on the show floor, during Spanish Day, and throughout the show as a whole.”

Key Show News

Among the news releases at the event, Airbus Helicopters said it had received several orders including the Norwegian Air Ambulance (3 H135s and 2 five-bladed H145s) for use in Denmark; the Lithuanian State Border Guard service ordered 3 five-bladed H145s; Lithuanian operator ASU Baltija ordered 2 H125s; and OAMTC Air Rescue from Austria ordered 2 H135s.

Bell Textron said at the show it had placed orders for two Bell 407GXi helicopters and a Bell 505, which it has sold to Poland’s JB Investments. Meanwhile, Bell presented Air Zermatt with a third Bell 429 during the show, along with a Bell 505.

Leonardo Helicopters said it had another AW09 light turbine helicopter sale, for Geneva-based Leman Aviation. The Italian manufacturer also revealed an increased gross-weight version of the AW169 just before the event in Madrid. Another high-flying manufacturer present in Spain was MD Helicopters which hosted Slovak Training Academy’s MD 520F on its show booth.

Among other news, Savback Helicopters announced at ER23 that it has been appointed as a distributor for Italian manufacturer Konner Helicopters.

Also at the show were numerous suppliers and service providers bringing innovations in areas such as tracking (e.g. finding mobile phones after avalanches in rescue missions) and camera pods. Training schools also featured prominently, along with software providers in areas such as flight operations; simulator manufacturers such as CAE, FlightSafety and Loft Dynamics; and media outlets. Rotorhub magazine published show dailies, while Aviation Week/AWIN had a booth where its sales team met with many of its European clients in the rotorcraft arena.

Ian Sheppard is a Senior Researcher for AirportData/AC-U-KWIK in Chobham, Surrey, UK