'To deepest Hampshire for the Farnborough 'Air Show', a
delightful euphemism for one of the world's leading arms fairs.'
-- Gadfly, Financial Mail on Sunday

'... this year's Farnborough air show was, in many ways, a flop.
Attendances, for the crucial first three trade days, were down by
a quarter on 2000. The static display was small and familiar,
there were few aircraft debuts and significant orders were
scarce.' -- Flight International

Farnborough International 2002, aka Farnborough Airshow, the
world's biggest arms fair, was, according to Flight International
'a flop' - visitor numbers were down, sales were down big time
(2000 $52 billion, 2002 $6 billion). Locals had never had it so
good as the roads around the site were nearly empty, though they
suffered from noise and fear of a crash from low flying aircraft.

An expose on Farnborough Airport in the June-July 2002 issue of
Corporate Watch newsletter. Copies from (50p each payable in
postage stamps):

Corporate Watch
16b Cherwell Street
OXFORD OX4 1BG

A more detailed article on the Corporate Watch website:

 http://www.corporatewatch.org.uk

On the first day of the Arms Fair, neo-Labour Baroness Symons
showed what a hard job it is being a minister of state at the
'ethical' Foreign Office. At 5pm she had a meeting with Jeb Bush
who worked so hard to ensure his brother George W Bush got
elected as US President, the arms industry has never looked back
since. At 7pm she attended a government reception at Farnborough
International, then at 8.30pm she was whisked off to another arms
sales party, this time the BAE Systems Gala Reception held in the
palatial surroundings of Hampton Court. [Private Eye No 1060 9-12
August 2002]

The following day three blood-splattered protesters gate-crashed
the SBAC arms fair dinner chanting 'thou shalt not kill'. As one
of the protesters, Father Martin Newell, said 'The Bishops of
Africa have called on Western Christians to engage with decision
makers and arms traders to stop the indiscriminate sale of
weapons.' Outside, a dozen protesters leafleted delegates as they
went into the dinner. When Jack Straw, foreign secretary, walked
into the plush hotel, where he was due to speak, he was harangued
by protesters, one of whom shouted 'Jack Straw you scumbag'.
[Indymedia UK 28 July 2002]

Last year Rushmoor chief executive Andrew Lloyd and Tory leader
John Marsh (employee of BAE Systems), went on a freebie trip to
the Paris Airshow courtesy of SBAC (organisers of the Farnborough
Airshow). At the time not even the council were aware of the
trip. Nothing to do with TAG (airport operators) we were told,
nor was it anything to do with plans SBAC had to turn their
temporary site into a major exhibition site for Europe. [see
above article in Corporate Watch Newsletter or website]

Immediately after the Airshow, SBAC held a joint press conference
with Dutch company De Boer Structures (contractors for the site
and owners of the temporary structures), they were pleased to
announce that the site, to be known as Space Farnborough, was
going to be a permanent exhibition site, ideally suited with fast
links to London and its own airport. It comes as no surprise to
also learn that this had all been agreed in secret talks with
Rushmoor, once again making a mockery of the planning process.

TAG Aviation with the connivance of MoD operate a business
airport at Farnborough. Behind TAG are Saudi arms dealers and
Middle East financiers, fully backed by MoD, BAE Systems and
SBAC. At Farnborough International 2002, Roger McMullin, chief
executive TAG Aviation Group, thanked MoD and BAE Systems for
their help during the planning process which was vital in keeping
the project on-time.

At the same press conference at Farnborough International 2002,
Roger McMullin, chief executive TAG Aviation Group, announced
'Farnborough is to become the Teterboro of London.' Teterboro,
based in New Jersey and serving New York, is a 24-hour
round-the-clock operation, the world's biggest business airport.
News of the expansion of Farnborough coincided with the
government's announcement of massive airport expansion across the
country.

Looking to the future, Farnborough International 2004 takes place
in two year's time - 19-25 July 2004. Seattle united diverse
groups and put globalisation firmly on the political agenda,
Farnborough International 2004 could do the same for aviation.
Opposition to the airshow, or as the airshow commentator
correctly put it trade fair (ie selling weapons to nasty
foreigners), has always been quite rightly to the defence side.
With global warming increasingly attributable to aviation, we
could see as many deaths, if not more, from the civil side. With
the government having announced a tripling of air passenger
numbers, and the consequential massive expansion of airports
(planning relaxation, noise, destruction of homes, air pollution,
loss of green belt etc.), the old discredited predict and provide
that was the basis and failure of the road's programme, we should
expect to see well organised opposition to all aspects of what is
the world's showcase for the aviation industry - opposition this
year, even to the arms fair, was noticeable by its virtual
absence - arms campaigners, airport campaigners,
environmentalists, anti-globalisation, small farmers, global
warming etc. The bloated, heavily subsidised aviation industry
has to be seen as much a pariah industry as the arms and tobacco
industry is and the oil industry is rapidly becoming.

Farnborough is not any old airport, it is a key component of
globalisation, nor is Farnborough any old arms fair, it is the
shop window for the aviation industry.

Farnborough International 2004 -- 19-25 July 2004. We have two
years to get our act together.

Seattle united diverse groups and put globalisation firmly on the
political agenda, Farnborough International 2004 could do the
same for aviation.

 http://www.heureka.clara.net/surrey-hants/airshow.htm
 http://www.farnborough-airport.org.uk
 http://bvej.freewebsites.com
 http://www.airportwatch.org.uk
 http://www.greenskies.org
 http://www.aef.org.uk
 http://www.caat.org.uk

Arms fair dinner disrupted, UK Indymedia, 28 July 2002

Keith Parkins, Air show, arms fair or corporate gateway to
Europe?, Corporate Watch newsletter, June-July 2002