In a press release HAI president and CEO, James A. Viola, announced that it had made “the difficult decision to cancel HAI HELI-EXPO 2021, scheduled for late March in New Orleans.
Since the coronavirus pandemic began in early 2020, the HAI staff and our show partners have been working to carry out an in-person show while maintaining the health and safety of all participants. We took extraordinary steps to be able to conduct a safe event.
While some in our industry have urged us to carry on with the show, the majority have recently expressed discomfort with the logistics involved in business travel at this time. HAI appreciates hearing from our diverse VTOL community, and we are grateful for the honest feedback that we’ve received from our members, exhibitors, attendees, and other stakeholders.
We know many of our partners have already invested in HAI HELI-EXPO 2021. Exhibitors have multiple options for their booth payments, including pushing participation and payment to the 2022 show in Dallas, repurposing dollars to other HAI advertising and sponsorship opportunities to support their business objectives in 2021, or issue of a full refund. Current exhibitors will be contacted with additional details in the next 5–7 business days, and more information on exhibitor options, including helpful contacts, can be found at heliexpo.com/faq.
Registered attendees will receive a full refund, as will those who registered for HAI Professional Education courses. Our housing vendor, onPeak, will cancel all hotel reservations booked within the HAI block. Registered attendees, HAI Professional Education course registrants, and those with hotel reservations within the HAI block will receive additional communication from HAI within the next 5–7 business days. Please visit heliexpo.com/faq for more information, including helpful contacts.
Please accept my apology and that of the entire HAI staff for canceling this year’s show. Just as you look forward to HAI HELI-EXPO® each year, we look forward to seeing you there. We appreciate your support for HAI and the industry, as well as your enthusiasm for the much-needed business, networking, and education opportunities that take place each year at our show.
The next edition of Helicopter-Expo has been postponed in 2022 and will be held on March 7–10 in Dallas, Texas, a city that has traditionally been a hub of rotorcraft operations.
