NBAA-BACE 2026 and the case for showing up in person

NBAA-BACE 2026 is in the books — the crown jewel of business aviation conferences. As I sit here back at my desk, finally recovered from the jet lag and physical exhaustion of the past week, I ask myself whether it was worth it. The immediate takeaway: why would anyone take on the burden of time and money to log 10,000 steps before lunchtime and possibly nurse a hangover on a school night?Sure, there are many obvious reasons to take in an event like this. The breakout sessions offer incredible value, and the OEMs and suppliers display some serious hardware to prospective customers. But can't most of these tasks be accomplished virtually? A glossy brochure and website. A Zoom call (live or recorded) should suffice. The argument for not attending is the ‘this meeting could have been handled as an email' refrain. But that's missing the actual point.It's a reminder of why business jets exist in the first place. "Time machine" is what we hear frequently. And why do we need to bend time? Because the human connection matters. Sales, management, board meetings and the lot can also all be done virtually. But with the means, they often are not, and that's because business deals and relationships are anchored in trust. Emails or online identities crafted by AI don't quite cut it.Bizav is famously a niche industry that happens to cover the planet. Many of us work on small teams in relative isolation. But no one works in a vacuum. Competition is suddenly getting ferocious. The big fleet operators continue to get bigger. FBOs continue to consolidate and expand. OEM order books keep getting deeper. Fractional ownership and utilization continue to expand.As the industry continues to move at light speed, doing the status quo in your role will likely work until it doesn't. It pays to learn. It pays to network. The ROI may not be immediately apparent but linger in isolation too long and suddenly you'll realize that the industry has moved on without you.When the opportunity exists to visit a big tent filled with your colleagues, take it. A very incomplete list of options: NBAA Schedulers andamp; Dispatchers, NBAA International Operators, AirVenture (Oshkosh) and the CBAA Annual Convention round out North America, with AERO Friedrichshafen, Paris Air Show and Dubai Airshow rounding out the big international events. (EBACE is conspicuously absent: the European Business Aviation Association cancelled EBACE26 in April and hasn't announced a 2027 edition while it works on the event's future format.) And that leaves out all the regional events and airshows that take place across the country.My experience at NBAA-BACE was refreshing. I bumped into colleagues from across the country and put a face to the name on many more. I learned a lot — some at the conference hall, some at the static displays, and maybe the most at a hotel lounge at midnight. Refreshingly, the bizav community doesn't have sharp elbows. Everyone is looking to support you, even the competition. Work outside this industry, like I have, and you'll appreciate that sentiment more than you can imagine.Will every conference be a networking or learning home run? Probably not. But you can be certain that living underneath a virtual rock for long enough can relegate you to the periphery of the industry. Need inspiration? Remind yourself what business aviation is all about (even if you have to fly coach).