by John Sami, Senior
At Embry-Riddle, doors open to those who grab the handle and turn it. I’m a Senior in Aeronautics with a triple minor in Business Administration, Aviation Safety, and Security graduating magna cum laude this December. Over the years I’ve had some pretty awesome experiences but this past week topped it all. I attended the 2015 Dubai Aviation Festival with CEOs and corporate Executives of Airlines and aviation businesses from around the world.
I was interested in attending the 2015 Dubai Aviation Festival because it’s the foremost conference for aviation in the Middle East. Over 80 airlines and airport representatives attended from Saudi Arabia, India, North Africa, Central Asia and more. Yes it was amazing! It was my first time in Dubai too! What a stunning city with such nice people.
At the conference I was able to participate in speed networking sessions and meet and greets with executives and sales professionals in the global aviation industry. The presentations gave me a unique perspective into the current state of aviation in these markets. I found it especially interesting to know that social media is really where many of these airlines will be focusing their future branding.
A major aspect of my attending was as an ambassador for ERAU’s 3rd annual AirCon which will be taking place in Chandler, AZ. I met with and invited 10 new international airlines and 20 aviation technology companies to attend and present research at the upcoming January event. AirCon is the world’s leading aviation research conference. It only makes sense that these professionals could benefit from the research-sharing at our AirCon and likewise we could benefit from their knowledge.
I’m also hoping my experience will help our current students. I brought company contacts for our international students to be able to obtain internships and full-time positions back home.
It’s opportunities like this that have shaped my academic time here at Embry-Riddle. I’m very grateful to have had the academic support of some great faculty like Dr. Brent Bowen and Robin Sobotta in the Aviation and Business programs.
*Note – The first photo of the space shuttle was taken on my layover in Virginia when I visited the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center National Air and Space Museum. This is the same gentleman who donated the ERAU Prescott Hazy Library!
