This year”s ITB Berlin features a whole host of conferences to add steel to the show backbone and features keynote speakers from a wide variety of disciplines.
The Future of Air Transport debate is on 9 March, with guest speaker, Tim Clark, president Emirates Airlines and Singapore Airlines senior vice president Europe, Tjhoen Onn Thoeng, discussing the introduction of new aircraft such as Boeing”s 747-8 and 787 and the Airbus A380.
At the other end of the scale and as low-cost carriers continue their extraordinary success story, Air Berlin CEO, Joachim Hunold, will offer his views on whether consolidation is a viable option for value and charter airlines. Lufthansa Cargo executive board chairman and CEO, Carsten Spohr, will also speak on hub management, while Booz Allen Hamilton managing director, Dieter Schneiderbauer, will address the topic of airport privatisation.
On the travel technology front, the opening day of 7 March sees two PhoCusWright seminars on travel search engine essentials, led by search industry expert, Danny Sullivan at 13.00 ” 15.00 and 15.30 ” 17.40. Participation cost is ”200.
And in a further development, ITB Berlin says that it will stage an Asian equivalent in Singapore during the autumn of 2008, to capitalise on the success of its sister show in Las Vegas.
ITB Berlin dates are 7-11 March, 2007 at the Berlin Exhibition Grounds.