The much-anticipated Dubai Airshow 2019, touted as a barometer for future demands in aviation, kicked off on Sunday at Dubai World Central in Dubai, UAE.

Al Fursan – the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Air Force aerobatic display team, along with the Emirates A380 – the UAE airline’s flagship commercial aircraft, soared through the skies in an unprecedented flypast procession during the inauguration.

The Emirates @Airbus A380 marks the opening of @DubaiAirshow 2019 with an unprecedented formation flypast accompanied by 26 military and air display aircraft. #FlyEmiratesFlyBetter #DAS19 https://t.co/dvPDatV0xh pic.twitter.com/HAXMhozES9

— Emirates Airline (@emirates) November 17, 2019

The event was attended by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai and Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nathan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, with Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation and Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates airline and Group.

“My brother Mohammed bin Rashid and I, witnessed the opening of the Dubai Airshow 2019. The show has become one of the most important specialised aviation exhibitions worldwide and is a major international platform for showcasing the latest defence technology,” tweeted His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nathan.

My brother Mohammed bin Rashid and I, witnessed the opening of the Dubai Airshow 2019. The show has become one of the most important specialised aviation exhibitions worldwide and is a major international platform for showcasing the latest defence technology. pic.twitter.com/36dWblLmRG

— محمد بن زايد (@MohamedBinZayed) November 17, 2019

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wazed also attended the show on the opening day.

By Sunday afternoon, #DAS2019 and #DubaiAirshow were the top two trends on Twitter, garnering over 3500 tweets.

Leading aviation brands such as Leonardo, Airbus and many more shared snippets of Dubai Airshow Day 1 on the microblogging site.

#Leonardo and Falcon Aviation Services have launched at the #DubaiAirshow an all-new rotorcraft-dedicated terminal concept that uniquely combines a helipad, a showroom and lounge areas in a single city-based heliport #DAS19 pic.twitter.com/gfs7rKacup

— Leonardo (@Leonardo_live) November 17, 2019

What is designed to cross the finish line FAST, using clean technology? It’s Condor Aviation’s modified Cassutt aircraft, unveiled @DubaiAirshow as the 1st @AirRaceE airplane. Airbus is providing insight & research for teams in this all-electric plane racing championship. #DAS19 pic.twitter.com/xJHO9kokaY

— Airbus (@Airbus) November 17, 2019

We’re happy to showcase our family of new, fuel efficient aircraft who are proudly serving the Middle East – Africa region! #DAS19 #DubaiAirshow pic.twitter.com/hw3NgQXhfe

— Airbus (@Airbus) November 17, 2019

The key international event, connecting key buyers and decision makers, will continue till Thursday, November 21.

In 2018, the Dubai Airshow witnessed 79,380 trade visitors, 1,200 exhibitors from 63 countries, 1,603 international and regional media and an order book in excess of $113.8 billion.

This year, the show is expecting almost 90,000 people and will reportedly showcase 165 aircraft.