LONDON—Organizers of this year’s Paris Air Show are beefing up security measures following a series of terror attacks in France over the last 24 months.
Tougher security checks will be in place, organizers told journalists during a May 3 briefing here, as work begins to transform Paris-Le Bourget Airport north of the city into Europe’s largest aerospace showcase.
“There will be concrete measures in place to deal with a truck attack,” chairman Emeric D’Arcimoles told journalists at the Royal Aeronautical Society. The French Air Force will also protect the airspace from potential UAV threats, although he did not elaborate on the types of measures that would be taken.
More than 1,000 private and state security personnel, including soldiers and police, will provide protection during the June 19-25 show. The uptick in security levels comes after a torrid two years of terror attacks in Paris and other parts of France, including a vehicle ramming attack which killed 86 people in Nice last August. Those entering the show will be subjected to X-ray checks for baggage and belongings.
Organizers are promising a bumper year, with many of the chalets and exhibition halls selling out as early as last October. Some 2,300 companies and organizations from 45 countries are planning to exhibit this year. There will be 300 official delegations, 150 of which will be from militaries representing 87 nations. D’Arcimoles says traditional visits are also planned by the French president, due to be elected May 7, and a new prime minister, to be elected the Sunday before the show.
The show is also due to welcome another head of state, although officials were unable to provide further details.
The team is currently planning to accommodate around 150 aircraft and for a 2- 2.5-hr. flying display.
Among those expected are the Mitsubishi Regional Jet and Kawasaki P-1, both making their debuts at a European trade show, although the P-1 did previously appear at the Royal International Air Tattoo in 2015.
Other types expected include the Embraer KC-390 airlifter.
Organizers say they have yet to formally receive a reply from the U.S. Department of Defense about a possible Paris debut of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. This is despite Aviation Week reports that the F-35 Joint Program Office announced that the fighter would not appear at the show.
“We visited the Pentagon twice this year,” D’Arcimoles said. “We [have] yet to receive an answer if the F-35 is coming or not.”
D’Arcimoles said he was surprised at reports the aircraft would not be attending, given the number of European countries involved in the fighter program. Officials said they were also unlikely to see attendance of Russian-built military aircraft because of sanctions against Moscow, although a Sukhoi Superjet regional airliner is likely to be present.
Managing Director Gilles Fournier said the show was also facing challenges in terms of air displays, with increasingly tighter restrictions on airspace use, reflecting the growing urban areas around the airfield. Public day displays by the French Air Force’s aerobatic team, the Patrouille de France, will be shortened by 10 min. and restricted only to the team’s formation flying. More dynamic sequences which require larger amounts of airspace will also be cut out. Operation of the two southern runways at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport is halted while the display team performs.