The European Business Aviation Association (EBAA) has postponed an announcement on the future location and dates for its EBACE trade show until the end of July. On Monday, the industry group said that Stefan Benz, its newly appointed interim managing director, is taking more time “to review the event’s future set-up.”
On Friday, the EBAA board appointed Benz to replace Holger Krahmer, who stepped down from his role as secretary general with immediate effect. The Brussels-based group said that its COO, Robert Baltus, had resigned and will leave his post later this year.
In May, during the EBACE 2025 show in Geneva, EBAA said that it would make an announcement about a new location and dates for the event on June 30. At the time, it said the decision would be based on extensive consultation with members and other stakeholders.
Announcing the deferred decision on Monday, EBAA said Benz and the board, which includes representatives of multiple national business aviation associations, will now seek to ensure that EBACE aligns with “the association’s evolving strategic priorities.” The group indicated that the announcement now expected in a month from now will not purely relate to the 2026 event and will aim “to confirm the long-term format and positioning of the show.”
The future of the annual EBACE event, launched in 2001, has been under review since August 2024 when NBAA unexpectedly pulled out of its long-standing joint venture with EBAA. The European group has acknowledged that it is considering other venues in multiple countries, in part due to complaints about high costs in Geneva. Although it did not feature the usual static display, the 2025 show received largely positive feedback for its new format.
According to sources close to the association who spoke with AIN on condition of anonymity, the EBAA board has tasked Benz with making the group leaner and more agile. In a desire to achieve more fundamental reforms, directors consciously changed the new leader’s title to managing director to reflect a preference for a more business-focused manager who would have a strong grounding in the business aviation industry.
Benz is a former senior executive with the Jet Aviation and Luxaviation business aviation services groups. Krahmer, a former German politician, had joined EBAA after working as a lobbyist for the car industry.