Following the Biden administration’s announcement that the USA will lift its travel ban on visitors from the UK, India, China, Brazil and most of Europe in early November, the organisers of APEX/IFSA Expo 2021 have moved the show dates to enable more people to attend. The Expos will now take place from 30th November to 2nd December (originally 19-21 October).
The three-day event, the first in-person APEX/IFSA Expo since 2019, will still take place at the Long Beach Convention Center in California. The event’s schedule, which includes a thought leadership conference and breakout sessions as well an awards ceremony, will also remain the same. While the exact date when the travel restrictions will be lifted has not yet been announced, the US Government has indicated it will be in November; the late November dates of the Expos should be a safe bet.
Dr Joe Leader, CEO of APEX/IFSA is delighted by Biden administration’s announcement, having lobbied for the USA to lift its travel restrictions on the EU, which included writing a letter to President Biden to explain why the blanket travel ban should be lifted.
Leader explained, “In our push, I emailed The White House coronavirus response coordinator Jeff Zients almost daily, pausing out of respect for the focus on Afghanistan. The unique element that APEX brought to the table was the humanitarian issues of so many passengers caught on the wrong side of the border. That, alongside the logic of increasingly vaccinated travel, finally caused The White House to make the change.”
Following a survey of airlines and suppliers already committed to attending APEX/IFSA Expo, the associations found that the date change is supported by 91% of airline and supplier members. Furthermore, members that were previously unable to attend are now enquiring about taking part, enabled by the new dates.
“As global member-based associations, APEX and IFSA are excited to host an Expo that allows for participation of all our members around the world,” added Lauren Costello, executive director of APEX/IFSA. “APEX and IFSA are innovative and collaborative communities, and connecting in-person is long overdue. We are excited to host the first in-person aviation event of the year, which will allow APEX and IFSA members to come back together with the common goal of rebuilding and strengthening the industry.”
For more information about the event, visit the APEX/IFSA EXPO microsite. The Covid-19 rules to ensure all staff and delegates’ health safety will still apply.
