U.S. aerospace VIPs rally on eve of Paris Air Show

Deputy Secretary of Defense Bill Lynn underlined the importance of modernizing the outdated export control process at an event hosted by AIA Sunday night. The exclusive reception and dinner brought together executives of aerospace manufacturers, the Congressional Delegation and officials from the departments of Commerce, Defense, State, Transportation and NASA.

AIA’s Marion Blakey welcomed the roughly 200 attendees, saying, “This dinner is always an excellent time to reflect on what brings us to the Paris Air Show – the confluence of technology and leadership that typifies our industry… As manufacturers, we’re particularly proud of the role we have in developing and deploying the technology that supports them. We’ve seen this year how our troops – supported by this technology –have brought down the most significant terrorist of our era.”

Representing AIA’s leadership was the chairman of its Board of Governors, Jim Albaugh, President and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

Deputy Secretary of Defense Bill Lynn with AIA President and CEO Marion Blakey

Lynn was the evening’s dinner speaker, and focused on the difficult economic environment U.S. aerospace companies operate under. The Obama administration is dedicated to revising the current export control process, which Lynn noted looks like "a marriage of the complexity of the Internal Revenue Service with the inefficiency of the Department of Motor Vehicles. It's something we have to change. We need to reverse this dynamic."

Learn more about export control modernization.