AVIATION WEEK Announces North America’s Largest Aviation Maintenance Event April 18-19 in Atlanta

NEW YORK — Top executives from all sectors of the aviation industry will convene during AVIATION WEEK’s annual MRO Conference & Exhibition, to be held April 18-19, 2007, at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta, GA. Now in its 12th year, the event will explore the future of aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) through a series of executive- level discussions drawing more than 5,500 + industry professionals and government executives. MRO will also host a sold-out exhibition hall with more than 400 MRO product and services suppliers.

The theme of MRO 2007 is "MRO -- Lean to the Nth Degree" During two days of intensive sessions and workshops, industry leaders will share their insights on how to cut expenses while maximizing safety and efficiency. The event’s agenda also explores ways to get and retain military business; growth in the Very Light Jet (VLJ) industry and the opportunities it brings; and the effects of and solutions presented by the shortage in core materials for aircraft manufacture and maintenance. In addition, MRO offers a new general session, "Raising the Bar on Lean" in which speakers representing organizations at all stages of the lean process will cover the tools and methodologies, such as Lean and Six Sigma, for improving performance within the commercial aviation industry.

MRO’s program includes keynote speeches by Clay Jones, Chairman, President and CEO, Rockwell Collins; Peter McDonald, EVP and COO, United Airlines; and Jim Whitehurst, COO, Delta Air Lines. Other prominent speakers include representatives from:

AAR Corp.
Adam Aircraft Industries
Aeroframe LLC
AeroStrategy LLC
Air Force Research Laboratory
Air Transport Association
Airbus
American Airlines
Boeing Co.
Bombardier ATV
Continental Airlines
Cytec Engineered Materials
Dassault Falcon Jet
DayJet Corp.
DLS Associates
Embraer
Empire Aero Center
Federal Aviation Administration
FedEx Express
G2 Limited
General Electric Co.
HEICO Aerospace Corp.
JetBlue Airways
L-3 Communications Integrated Systems
Lufthansa Technik Group
Lynne Carbone & Associates Inc.
MagnumJet
Mercer Management Consulting
Northwest Airlines
Pratt & Whitney
Rockwell Collins
Scott AFB
Snecma Services
Team SAI
Thales Avionics Inc.
Transport Canada
United Services
UPS
USAF
Virgin America
Vueling Airlines

"The primary goal of AVIATION WEEK’s MRO Conference & Exhibition is to improve our attendees’ businesses by bringing them the latest developments in all facets of operations, business, technology and safety" said Tom Henricks, President, AVIATION WEEK. "Through continued innovation, MRO’s program addresses the most important topics today and anticipates the challenges and opportunities that may arise tomorrow. It’s this innovation that has made our event the largest and most important in the MRO marketplace" Henricks added.