The 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) began its three-day run in the North Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center with keynote appearances by husband-and-wife tennis superstars Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, both of whom were interviewed by NBAA President and Chief Executive Officer Ed Bolen.
“Sustainability” was the watchword as the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) conducted its annual convention earlier this month in Las Vegas. More than 20,000 visitors and 800 exhibitors converged on the Las Vegas Convention Center and the aircraft display at Henderson Executive Airport (HND) for the three-day NBAA-BACE 2023 and the clarion cry they heard from industry leaders was announcement of a new campaign to propel the business aviation industry to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
NBAA used business aviation’s largest annual event to launch a new initiative, called “Climbing. Fast.,” a platform to affirm the industry’s commitment to cleaner business aircraft operations. NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen echoed the new motto when he said “At NBAA-BACE we made it clear: business aviation is on a mission to net zero – and we are Climbing. Fast.”
A dramatic display of a more sustainable future in airborne mobility included demonstration flights of electric air taxis every day at HND as advanced air mobility (AAM) pioneer Volocopter flew its 2X multirotor personal air vehicle. In addition, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) was available for upload at all three Las Vegas-area airports and the tanks of all turbine aircraft departing the show were filled with the renewable biofuel, which can reduce net-carbon emissions by up to 80%.
A number of new aircraft were unveiled at NBAA-BACE, including Textron Aviation’s Cessna Citation CJ3 Gen2, the Honda Echelon and the Embraer Phenom 100EX, as well as the convention debuts of the Airbus ACJ220, the Beechcraft Denali and Bombardier’s certified pre-owned Challenger 300.
Aerlex Law Group President Stephen Hofer said he was encouraged by the heightened recognition of the need for business aviation to play a role in achieving long-term ecological balance in its operations. “Given our firm’s home in California, a state recognized internationally for its commitment to environmental protection, and the environmentally conscious attitude espoused by many of Aerlex’s celebrity clients, I have been advocating for years for a stronger push for business aviation operations that respect the environment and don’t deplete natural resources,” Hofer said. “For that reason, I am pleased that NBAA is showing leadership in the campaign for greater environmental responsibility in our industry. Aerlex will do whatever we can to support that campaign.”
Hofer and his wife Tammy attended a number of NBAA-BACE events at both HND and the Convention Center, including the first-day keynote, an interview by Bolen of tennis legends and husband-and-wife Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, and the presentation of NBAA’s Meritorious Service to Aviation Award to renowned civilian astronaut, aviator, entrepreneur, philanthropist and friend of the firm Jared Isaacman.
Of course, no NBAA convention would be complete without the after-hour dinners and receptions and the pictures included with this article include both daytime and evening events.
As part of the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, TVPX Aircraft Solutions, Inc. sponsored an evening of hors d’oeuvres and cocktails at Emeril’s New Orleans Fish House at the MGM Grand Las Vegas Hotel & Casino and Aerlex Law Group President Stephen Hofer and his wife, Tammy Barr, posed with Ford von Weise, Director and Global Head of the Aircraft Finance Group at Citi Private Bank, Richard Barret, Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Business Aviation at The Huntington National Bank, and Richard’s daughter, Julia, with Leo the MGM Lion, a golden statue underneath the dome in the lobby of the hotel, behind them.Stephen Hofer and Adrian Cooper, Regional Sales Executive of Rolls-Royce North America, at the Annual NBAA Very Important Person (VIP) Reception sponsored by Rolls-Royce at Spago restaurant in the Bellagio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.As part of the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Nevada, aircraft lender Global Jet Capital sponsored an evening of hors d’oeuvres and cocktails outside on the terrace of Prime Steakhouse in the Bellagio Hotel & Casino, and Tammy Barr posed for a picture at the end of reception with Aimee Talbert Nardini, director of marketing at Global Jet Capital.
Stephen Hofer and his wife, Tammy Barr, pose with Mark Bloomer, Co-Founder of JetTransactions, Inc., Ford von Weise, Director and Global Head of the Aircraft Finance Group at Citi Private Bank, and Bob Rabbitt, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Avpro, Inc., at the Annual NBAA Very Important Person (VIP) Reception sponsored by Rolls-Royce at Spago restaurant in the Bellagio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.As part of the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Nevada, aircraft lender Global Jet Capital sponsored an evening of hors d’oeuvres and cocktails outside on the terrace of Prime Steakhouse in the Bellagio Hotel & Casino, and the guests included Louis Seno, Chairman Emeritus of Jet Support Services, Inc. (JSSI), Tammy Barr and her husband, Stephen Hofer.Stephen Hofer poses with David Best, Senior Vice President and General Manager at Jet Aviation, on the floor of the Las Vegas Convention Center during the last day of the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Louis Seno, Chairman Emeritus of Jet Support Services, Inc. (JSSI), and his wife, Christine, are flanked by Stephan Aspar, Senior Vice President of Marketing at AIC Title Service, and Brett King, President and Trust Counsel at TVPX Trust Services, at the “Up the Ante” Welcome Reception jointly sponsored by the International Aircraft Dealers Association (IADA) and National Aircraft Finance Association (NAFA) at Aria Resort and Casino prior to the beginning of the 2023 NBAA-BACE.
As part of the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Nevada, aircraft lender Global Jet Capital sponsored an evening of hors d’oeuvres and cocktails outside on the terrace of Prime Steakhouse in the Bellagio Hotel & Casino, and Tammy Barr posed with Sydney Zacsek, sales director with JetTransactions, and the Bellagio Lake as the background for the picture.Stephen Hofer with Nel Stubbs. Vice President and owner of Conklin & de Decker, who received NBAA’s John P. “Jack” Doswell Award in recognition of her long-time and outstanding contributions and service to the business aviation community.Gary Fullman, Aircraft Division Vice President of Vimar Transportation Consultants (second from left) is flanked by four members of the Bank of Utah senior management team, Michael Arsenault, Senior Vice President, Bank President, Branden P. Hansen, Kade Baird, Assistant Vice President and Corporater Trust Counsel, and Jon Croasman, Senior Vice President and Manager Corporate Trust, at the end of a dinner and reception that Vimar and Bank of Utah sponsored jointly at Fogo de Chão in Las Vegas for aviation professionals attending the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE).Stephen Hofer poses with Tony Marlow, President of Aviation Operations & Business Development with Castle & Cooke Aviation, at the AvFuel vendors booth on the floor of the Las Vegas Convention Center during the last day of the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Nevada.Alisdair Whyte, editor and co-founder of Specialist Insight, publisher of Corporate Jet Investor (CJI), with Jeffrey Carrithers, President and Chief Executive Officer of Globalair.com, and his wife, Elisa, at the “Up the Ante” Welcome Reception jointly sponsored by the International Aircraft Dealers Association (IADA) and National Aircraft Finance Association (NAFA), held at Aria Resort and Casino prior to the beginning of the 2023 NBAA-BACE.
Stephen Hofer attended the static Aircraft Display at Henderson Executive Airport, part of the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Nevada, and chatted with Brian Counsil, President & Chief Executive Officer with Sun Air Jets of Camarillo and Van Nuys, California, and Frank Vento, Vice President of Sales for the United States at Bombardier Business Aircraft, at the Bombardier Aviation booth.
Stephen Hofer poses with Chris Warners, Vice President at Jeteffect, Inc., at the Annual NBAA Very Important Person (VIP) Reception sponsored by Rolls-Royce at Spago restaurant, with the sunset view of the Fountains of Bellagio and the Paris Las Vegas Eiffel Tower as the backdrop for their picture.
As part of the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Nevada, aircraft lender Global Jet Capital sponsored an evening of hors d’oeuvres and cocktails at Prime Steakhouse in the Bellagio Hotel & Casino, which was attended by Stephen Johns, President of LL Johns & Associates, Inc., Tammy Barr and her husband, Stephen Hofer and Michael Moore, Executive Vice President of Essex Aviation Group, Inc.
Stephen Hofer with Brant Dahlfors, Co-Founder of JetTransactions, Inc., at the Bombardier Aviation booth at the static Aircraft Display at Henderson Executive Airport, part of the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Nevada. Brant held various senior positions in sales with Bombardier from 1994 to 2014.Stephen Hofer and Timothy Crum, Passport Fleet Program Manager, Business & General Aviation, General Electric Aviation, at the GE Aerospace booth on the floor of the Las Vegas Convention Center during the last day of the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Nevada.
As part of the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Nevada, aircraft lender Global Jet Capital sponsored an evening of hors d’oeuvres and cocktails outside on the terrace of Prime Steakhouse in the Bellagio Hotel & Casino. Stephen Hofer posed for a picture with Steve Day, Head of Sales, Americas, at Global Jet Capital, and Daniel McInerney (left) and Mark Zic (right), Business Development officers at Dynomax, Inc., an aircraft engineering and manufacturing firm from Wheeling, Illinois, that creates aircraft components, with the Bellagio Lake as the background for the picture.
Stephen Hofer and Edward Wetzel, Owner and President of Aviation Maintenance Support, Inc., at the GE Aerospace booth on the floor of the Las Vegas Convention Center during the last day of the 2023 National Business Aviation Association-Business Aviation Convention & Exposition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Nevada.Stephen Hofer and Tammy Barr pose in the lobby of the MGM Grand Las Vegas Hotel & Casino with Leo the MGM Lion, a golden statue underneath the dome in the lobby of the hotel, behind them.
