PRESS STATEMENT
YB
Dato’ Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein
A
more exciting and vibrant Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace
Exhibition (LIMA) awaits participants and visitors this year. This year’s
edition of LIMA promises to be the biggest and best Malaysia has ever hosted due
to :-
A
dramatic increase in total gross space occupied in the exhibition, covering a
total of 119,209 square meters, roughly 15,000 square meters more than LIMA
2015. This is a direct result of re-introducing the focus on the Maritime
Segment at Resorts World, Langkawi.Exhibitors from the maritime sector will be
showcasing the latest in equipment and assets alongside naval demonstrations.
2. Another
first for LIMA 2017 will be the array of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV)
and Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV) that will be on display such as the
United States Air Force MQ-1 Predator, United States Navy MQ-8 Fire Scout,
Thales Fulmar Mini-UAV, SAAB AUV 62AT, and the TBN UAV from Ukraine.
3. We
will also be one step closer to fully realising the 15-to-5 Transformation for
the Royal Malaysian Navy as LIMA 17 will play host to the signing for our Littoral
Mission Ships (LMS).
LIMA’
17 also serves as the perfect platform to encourage further co-operation
between Malaysia and regional & global allies in both
the maritime and aerospace industries, specifically on asset acquisition as
Armed Forces around the world are modernizing their asset bases. For example, the Chiefs of
Navy Roundtable Talk at LIMA’17 this year will bring together 12 Chiefs of Navy
and 24 representatives to discuss about “Naval
Capability Based Acquisition Reform”.Subsequently, the LIMA’17 Air Chiefs Conference will also
be taking a similar approach this year, and the attending Chiefs of Air Force
and other senior air delegations will be tackling the “Air Force Capability
Based Acquisition Reform”.
This year, the LIMA’17
organising committee was strengthened by increased involvement from the the
Ministry of Transport and the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA); the Malaysian
Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA); the Ministry of International Trade and
Industry through MATRADE, the Malaysian Investment Development Authority
(MIDA), and the Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High
Technology (MIGHT); the Ministry of Youth and Sports; the Ministry of
Finance; the Ministry of Tourism and Culture; Ministry of Home Affairs and the
Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM); Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and most
importantly the Kedah State Government and the Langkawi Development Authority
(LADA).
This synergy has resulted
in many new exciting initiatives including the ASEAN Aviation Summit, the
Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT) Open Forum on Shipbuilding
& Ship Repair (SBSR),
the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency's Search & Rescue Forum and the
Seminar on Aerospace Industry.
These programs, along with other high impact conferences and activities, will
run concurrent with the exhibition and provide visitors with a well-rounded
experience and valuable chances for knowledge exchanges, building networks and
business connections.
Another first for LIMA 17
will be the involvement of our youths from across the country. The Ministry of
Youth and Sports, together with the Ministry of Defence have invited over 500
young individuals from BrigedSukarelawanKhidmat Negara (BSKN),
UniversitiPertahananNasional Malaysia (UPNM), UniversitiTeknologi Mara (UiTM)
Perlis, ParlimenBelia Malaysia, iM4U, GabunganPelajarMelayuSemenanjung (GPMS),
MajlisBelia Malaysia (MBM) and our Reserve Officer Training Unit (PALAPES).
They will be attending a Comprehensive Educational Tour throughout LIMA ’17 and
attend engagement sessions with leaders in the defence sector. On the final
day, we will be hosting a TransformasiNasional
2050 (TN50) Townhall Dialogue on defence to encourage the youth to play a
larger role and capture their aspirations about the future of our security.
Furthermore, the Black
Eagles, the aerobatic team of the Republic of Korea Air Force will be making a
first-time appearance this LIMA. The Black Eagles’ performance involves 9 KAI –
T50B jet aircrafts. LIMA 2017 will also see the return of the Russian Knights
and TNI-AU’s Jupiter as part of the aerobatic demonstrations on show. Our very
own Royal Malaysian Air Force’s SU-30 MKM and F/A 18D jets, the Rafale from
France, the Gripen 39C/D from Thailand and 2 Supersonic B-1 Bombers from the
United States Air Force will also perform flypasts during the exhibition.
Most of the world’s top
25aerospace and defence companies will be present at LIMA’17. In addition, our
local giants DEFTECH, National Aerospace Defence Industries (NADI), Boustead
Heavy Industries Corporation (BHIC), Sapura and MARA Aerotech will be leading
Malaysia’s participation at the show with over 290local companies expected at
LIMA’17.
LIMA ’17 has confirmed 555
exhibitors from 36 countries and is expecting over 180,000 trade and public
visitors from all over the world. LIMA ’17 will be held from 21 to 25 March
2017 in Langkawi. This year will mark the 14th edition in its 27
year history and is expected to be the best and biggest one to date.