State officials are optimistic hosting a global conference for commercial air carriers and representatives from hundreds of airports will lead to more air travel business for Indiana's airports.
Gov. Eric Holcomb and Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett announced Jan. 17 that Indianapolis was selected to host the Routes Americas conference in February 2020.
“This is truly an exciting day for Indiana as we celebrate landing the Routes Americas 2020 conference,” Holcomb said. “Securing this bid is another step toward increasing Indiana's connectivity and nonstop flights as well as a perfect opportunity to showcase Indiana's growing global business economy and tourist assets to decision makers across North and South America.”
Indiana's bid for the conference was a collaborative effort between the state, city of Indianapolis, Indianapolis International Airport, Indiana Chamber of Commerce, Indy Chamber, Visit Indy, and the state's regional airports, Evansville Regional Airport, Fort Wayne International Airport and South Bend International Airport.
Routes Americas is an annual event focused on aviation route development, convening leading network planners, airports and tourism authorities to discuss increased air service from airports across North and South America. The conference is expected to draw 800 delegates representing 80 airlines, 300 airports and 50 tourism authorities, and generate 20 speakers and 2,100 face-to-face meetings between Feb. 3 and Feb. 5, 2020 in downtown Indianapolis.
“Indianapolis has a reputation for hosting great events, so we are very excited to be taking the route development community there to experience its renowned hospitality,” said Steven Small, brand director of Routes. “It's an exciting time for our hosts, and we are confident that hosting Routes Americas 2020 will help them to achieve their ambitions.”
Indianapolis is only the third U.S. city to host Routes Americas, with previous conferences held in Denver and Las Vegas. Past locations also include Mexico, Peru, Dominican Republic, Bahamas, Colombia, El Salvador, Puerto Rico and Ecuador. The 2019 conference will take place in Quebec City, Canada next month.
Conference organizers suggested the biggest return on investment for a host is through increased connectivity. Conference organizers add that on average, host airport networks had grown by about 9 percent more than their benchmark after three years, and that the conference is estimated to have a short-term $2 million local economic impact and $40 million long-term local economic impact.
Holcomb recently announced his infrastructure agenda for 2019 which includes a new $1 billion investment in transformational infrastructure projects. The Next Level Connections program outlines plans to increase the number of nonstop international flights to and from Indiana.
“Routes Americas has an impact far beyond the dollars spent by attendees during the course of the event,” said Leonard Hoops, president and CEO of Visit Indy. “It allows us to show off our city, state, and award-winning airport to route development professionals who have the ability to launch new flights to and from Indy and other Indiana airports.”
