In a more peaceful world, not yet tyrannised by an orange rage hamster in the White House, Dubai welcomed the movers and shakers of the aviation industry. These gathered at Dubai World Central (DWC), the future main international airport of Dubai, to conduct serious business at the Dubai Airshow, one of the world’s main trade shows. Sadly, the show ended in tragedy on its final day.
Always trying to be at the forefront of developments in the fields of technology, economy, hospitality and science, Dubai is a natural venue to host a prestigious aviation trade event. The venue for the Dubai airshow 2025 was once again the exhibition halls to the eastern end of Al-Maktoum airport. These featured a wide variety of exhibitors, whilst also providing an opportunity to learn and engage with leading experts from around the world on topics of aviation management and sustainability. There was also a new section dedicated to VIP hospitality, and the drone hall first seen in 2023 made a return.
Outside the trade hall, the re-vamped catering area, now called Skybites, saw significant improvements in both food offering and entertainment, with live acts providing a soothing backdrop to relax before the airshow got underway, or when taking a break from the heat on the static ramp.
Skyview was in its usual location to the rear-right of the showground, welcoming regular visitors to also watch the aerial action. As it is a trade show, the showground itself is limited to professionals. The new show mascotte Falco the Sky Explorer was no doubt a big hit with families in Skyview.
The static ground was in its usual lay-out, if with more emphasis on aerial defence, space exploration and personalized drone transport and cargo services. The United States DoD (or is it DoW?) and Russian aviation industry found themselves at opposite ends of the showground, both looking for ways that might one day allow them to conclude conflicts successfully again. The large American transports offered some shade, as did the wide-body airliners on the ramp. The Russian however stole the show with their Sukhoi T-50, the SU-57 prototype, making a welcome static appearance.
The aerial action was slightly longer than before, stretching to three and a half hours each day, and was full of gems. It saw the debut of the Joby JAS4-1 Electric VTOL aerial taxi, and the Dubai-based Actionflight offering thrill rides with Extra 330s. Perhaps the strangest addition to the flying programme was the Moroccan air force display team Marche Verte with their Cap230s, in support of a Moroccan trade mission to the United Arab Emirates. Sadly, diplomatic tensions between South-Korea and Japan prevented the South-Korean Black Eagles display team from making it to Dubai in support of the South-Korean president’s visit to the Emirate.
With the Russian Knights, the Indian Surya Kiran and the UAE’s own Al Fursan, and to a much lesser extent the Baltic Bees, there was still plenty of display team action to be had. Al Fursan appeared for the first time with their brand new Hongdu L-15 Falcons, bought especially for use with the team. Nothing had been heard about their switch to these new jets since the announcement in 2023. The team re-surfaced with just days to go until the airshow, but their display was already back to its usual high standard. The sound these Chinese-built jets make throughout the routine is quite something!
Airliners and military aircraft made up the rest of the exciting flying display, which ran tight as clockwork once again. Sadly, on the last day of the event, the Indian air force Tejas solo display, flown by Wing Commander Namansh Syal, went horribly wrong. When exiting an outside negative G-turn, the aircraft spun out of control and crashed into the ground, killing the pilot. The display had been validated by the Flying Control Committee and had been flown to a high safety standard throughout the week. This marked a sombre end to an otherwise outstanding edition of the Dubai Airshow.
With more than twice the amount of trade as the 2023 edition of the event, the 2025 Dubai Airshow is definitely a success, despite the tragedy on the show’s final day. It remains to be seen what the longterm effect of the recent war in the region will be on the airshow. Time will tell.
