France Scraps Eurosatory 2020 Show

Eurosatory in Paris, the world’s biggest defense exhibition with some 1800 exhibitors registered, finally pulled the plug on the 2020 event owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The current situation no longer makes Eurosatory possible in 2020. It is with immense disappointment that GICAT (French Land and Airland Defence and Security Association) and its subsidiary COGES are forced to cancel the fair planned for June," Coges, the organizer of the event said in a statement on March 26.

The show was scheduled to run from June 8-12 at the Parc des Expositions in Paris-Nord Villepinte. Around 100,000 participants, visitors, exhibitors and organisers were expected to take part in the event.

As of today, the deadly virus has infected over 44,500 people and has claimed 3,000 lives in France alone.

"Many international and French exhibitors registered for the Eurosatory trade fair scheduled from June 8 to 12, 2020 are no longer able to prepare their participation and configure or transport the necessary equipment. It also appears that the very large number of foreign visitors expected to participate in the fair can no longer plan their trip to France. The postponement of the exhibition to a later date has been studied but the conditions for success can not be met," the statement read.

With some of the exhibitors not wanting to incur costs associated with installing stalls at the show and halting transport of equipment to the venue, number of visitors shrinking, and the support staff left with less time to prepare for the show, Coges decided to cancel the event, wrote LA Tribune.

Germany's ILA Berlin 2020, England's Farnborough International Airshow, America's AUSA Global Force Symposium and Exposition, and Qatar's DIMDEX 2020 are other events that have been cancelled, while DSA Malaysia has been postponed.