Scheduled to be staged between 22nd and 25th October 2019, NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition is one of the world’s foremost business aviation conferences of any size. Put on by the Washington-based National Business Aviation Association, the event is hugely popular among professionals in the aviation industry throughout North America and Europe.
In fact, the 2017 edition of the conference was the ninth-largest trade show of any industry in the entire United States. When NBAA-BACE moved to Florida in 2018, well over 23,000 aviation industry and media professionals turned up. Given that the latest iteration of NBAA-BACE is due to be staged in Las Vegas, Nevada, even more people are likely to be in attendance.
This is because, as the organisers themselves have claimed, the eighth edition of the show is going to be much more focussed on the needs of business aviation in the Pacific. Indeed, NBAA-BACE 2019 is set to be the biggest yet with plenty of Asian companies among the exhibitors.
Of course, Las Vegas is a major tourist destination in its own right with plenty of domestic and trans-Atlantic air traffic to contend with already. In-depth knowledge of the best approaches to flight planning and airfield performance can certainly help at busy times, especially for those with tight schedules to keep.
Turn to Flightworx for assistance with your planning. Not only are we flight disruption management specialists – should anything go wrong – but we also have expertise with arranging aircraft ground handling services at peak times, something that is not always easy in Las Vegas. What should you be thinking about in advance of flying to the city during the conference?
Flight Planning for Las Vegas
In many cases, McCarran International Airport (KLAS/LAS) will be a suitable choice of airport for anyone flying to Las Vegas for NBAA-BACE. Firstly, it is by far the biggest airport serving Las Vegas with four large runways and an array of aviation ground handling companies to choose from.
Secondly, it is only three miles away from where the Las Vegas Convention Center is located making it the ideal choice for onward travel. However, the show’s organisers at NBAA are also using Henderson Executive Airport (KHND/HSH), to the south of the city centre, as a base for the show. As such, it may be better to consider flying to it directly, subject to already having cleared customs elsewhere if arriving internationally.
This will probably mean needing to book aircraft parking and ground handling in advance, however, since it has fewer facilities overall. A transfer to downtown Las Vegas from Henderson Executive Airport would take about 35 minutes via Interstate-15.
Smaller Airfields Serving Las Vegas
If you are not in time to fly to either McCarran or Henderson, or simply want an alternative, then North Las Vegas Airport (KVGT/VGT) is worth considering. There is some helicopter traffic that uses the airport, worth knowing if you want to arrange a taxi flight on to the convention.
Another good option is Boulder City Municipal Airport (KBVU/BLD). Although it is 25 miles from the main part of the show, it is easy to get to Henderson Airport from here. Boulder Airport is primarily used for tourist flights over the Grand Canyon but sees an influx of general aviation traffic when major trade shows are active in Las Vegas.
