Farnborough , England ( CNN ) -- Every second year , the small town of Farnborough in South East England plays host to the biggest names of the aviation world . Exhibitors and vistors mingle with the latest technology to hit the skies . While the economy remains bleak , a smaller number of orders from plane constructors like Airbus and Boeing than previous years is expected . But huge advances have been made in aerospace technology with Virgin Galactic ( showing the SpaceShipTwo for the first time in Europe ) and SpaceX looking to steal the show from other exhibitors . Not to be outdone , plane manufacturer Boeing returned to Farnborough with its first aerial display in 28 years staging a rare UK flypast of its new 787 Dreamliner . The Qatar Airlines-liveried Dreamliner roared into the skies over the Farnborough Airshow for an aerial demonstration lasting a brief seven minutes , before touching back down on the tarmac . The Qatar Airways version of the 787 will soon be entering service on Middle Eastern routes before operating on a Doha-London service -- although the schedule has yet to be confirmed . Read more : A step forward on Dreamliner flight . The Qatar aircraft features a total of 254 seats . Passengers using the 22 business class seats will be able to recline into a fully-flat , 32-inch wide bed . `` The first of our 60 Boeing 787s on order will set new standards in service and excellence as we continue to grow aggressively , bringing a heightened level of luxury and state-of-the-art engineering to the skies with these new-generation aircraft , '' Qatar Airlines CEO Akbar Al Baker said in a statement .
Farnborough airshow is one of the biggest aviation industry gatherings . Multi-million dollar deals are made for aviation 's top names like Airbus , Boeing and Embrarer . CNN brings you pictures of all the goings on at this spectacular flying festival .