Inside with the most exclusive seat vendor at AIX 2016

As part of my itinerary through the Aircraft Interiors Expo earlier this month I made a point of checking out as many of the seating vendors as I could, particularly with respect to the economy class developments. Alas, I was unable to get to all of them though in some cases it was more like some of them did not want to deal with me. Or really any media. B/E Aerospace is somewhat renown for taking a hard line with the media. In 2015 access to the booth was denied repeatedly until late on the last day and even then the company delivered misinformation about the presence of some products. In 2016 there was a single time slot dedicated for media tours, the very first half hour of the show. And so I presented myself at the designated location with my badge in hand, only to be told that I was not welcome on the tour. Ouch.

Fortunately for me, however, some colleagues were granted access and able to report from inside. That is, if you can call a hurried, no photos, no recording tour reporting. Check out what Jason Rabinowitz managed to compile from the visit.

No pictures at the B/E Aerospace #AIX2016 booth, so here’s an emoji rendering: 💺

— Jason Rabinowitz (@AirlineFlyer) April 5, 2016

B/E Aerospace showing off cool LED cabin lighting concepts. But I can’t show it to you. So here’s a rainbow emoji: 🌈 #AIX2016

— Jason Rabinowitz (@AirlineFlyer) April 5, 2016

Seriously, that’s all there was for and from the media.

I get that trade shows are also about taking meetings with current or potential customers and doing actual business. But it boggles my mind that companies don’t also want to brag about their product to reporters in hopes of some positive press. To say nothing of the potential for actual news coverage. I just don’t get it. Though I suppose the part where they didn’t have anything new to say this year may be part of it. Still sucks.

(header image lifted from the company website because they don’t make anything else available to media)