The 18th World Route Development Forum will provide more opportunities for air service industry professionals to meet and do business than ever before.
This year’s event, which will take place later this year in Abu Dhabi, will see the addition of a third day of pre-scheduled meetings giving Chalet Owners and Hosted Networking Stand (HNS) holders extra opportunities to meet with their target carriers. During the afternoon of Sunday 30th September, from 14:00-17:00, HNS holders and Chalet Owners will be able to take advantage of a pre-scheduled diary of 20 minute meetings which will take place in their respective Chalets or exhibition stands.
Speaking about these additional meeting opportunities Paul Winfield, Airline Relations Director for Routes explains: “The 17th World Route Development Forum in Berlin saw 500 key decision makers from over 300 of the world’s leading airlines attend the event, and the overwhelming feedback was for further opportunity to visit the exhibitors to understand the market data and information they can provide.”
HNS holders and Chalet owners will now have the ability to request five pre-scheduled twenty minute meetings that will take place on their stand, or in their chalet during Sunday afternoon and this reflects the demand for meetings which continues to grow. Since 2008 when World Routes took place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, there has been a 31% rise in the number of pre-scheduled meetings.
The five extra meetings, which must be taken on the afternoon of Sunday 30th September, will be in addition to the number of strategic or double slot meetings which are already offered to Chalet and HNS holders at World Routes.
Meeting with an airport or tourism authority at their hosted Networking Stand or Chalet can allow for more private and in-depth discussions to take place as there is more scope for airlines to grasp a real understanding of the destination through videos, images and stand activities. Larger meetings with more participants can take place away from the airline meeting tables providing the tourism authorities or economic development agencies with an opportunity to support their airport in their presentations.
These meetings will provide airlines with a more rounded picture for a potential new market and supply the right information from the right contacts whilst ensuring that airports gain further opportunities to introduce their destination to their target carriers.