The video we grabbed doesn't do justice to a very entertaining and insightful discussion, but it does give you a flavour of the subjects over which our interview ranged.

Topics covered in the interview included what he will do in Doha if challenged by a low-cost player; and what he understands Boeing might have to do to meet its production rate challenges on the much-delayed 787 Dreamliner.

For others interviews Max and I have done with Mr Al Baker check out these links:

Max interviews the Qatar chief in Doha in December 2007 and talks money and orders,

Mark interviews Mr Al Baker for an Airline Business cover interview in early 2006 and talks about his management style.

I was alerted to the difference of opinion between the two sides by a press release the DAA emailed to me entitled "DAA rains some facts on Ryanair's latest colouful parade". 

The DAA uses the press release to defend the charges at Dublin Airport that have got Ryanair in a tizzy and caused it to slash its winter schedule at the airport by 18%. 

The DAA's retorts to the Irish budget carrier include: "The combination of a sharp economic slowdown in many of [Ryanair's] key markets, its own failure to provide hedge against historically high oil prices and its heavily loss-making investment in Aer Lingus are the key factors driving this decision to consolidate seasonal schedules and not airport charges, which are paid fully by the airline's passengers."

That's fighting talk where I come from. And sure enough, Ryanair has hit back with all guns blazing with its own press release, in which it says: "The DAA is a high cost State monopoly, which doesn't care about consumers or tourism, they are more interested in increasing charges to airlines and for car parking, and producing useless and irrelevant so-called Fact Sheets."

And so the ball passes back into DAA's court: the question is, will they keep up this tit-for-tat argument or just sigh and agree to disagree? 

So here are a few final quotes from my notebook picked up during the day.

1. Boeing 787 programme manager Pat Shanahan during his media briefing on the status of the Dreamliner programme:

"I feel a bit like Brad Pitt," he chuckles, as the cameras flash, somewhat in awe of being so much the centre of attention. "They don't let me out a lot," he adds good humouredly.

Here is my story from Flight Daily News where Pat told me all about where the 787 stands today.

2. Pat Shanahan Quote Number 2:

"I'm a little busy," he says of his workload getting the 787 ready for first flight later this year.

James was in a good mood as his Abu Dhabi-based carrier had only the night before had won the Marketing Award at the Airline Business magazine Airline Strategy Awards.

Also see the video of Kingfisher Airlines chairman VJ Mallya talking about his new cabin interior from on board his new Airbus A330-200 at the show.

Posted by Harry Schneider

It's now mid-afternoon and main attraction for the next hour is the only flight here of the US Air Force Raptor F-22 fast military jet. That is until Etihad Airways makes its second monster order of the day at Airbus at 1600.

You would be forgiven for wondering just what is the problem with the airline industry at the moment. Oil may be at over $140 a barrel, but FlyDubai with their 54 737 orders and Etihad with its 35 787s and 10 777s are ploughing on regardless.

This week, The Flight Group gathered up the leading editors for a very rare, important meeting to determine how the vital coverage of the largest and most important event in aviation should be documented.

I had exclusive access into the editor's meeting on Tuesday morning, and I can tell you what they are planning in the build up to Farnborough.

Seen above, from left to right, Andrew Doyle of the Flight Group, Mark Pilling of Airline Business, Alan Peaford of Flight Daily News, and Max Kingsley-Jones and Murdo Morrison of Flight International.

For other cheeky advertising ploys, many featuring low-cost carriers, read Flightglobal editor Mike Targett's blog on his top 10 most blatant uses of sex for an aviation-related marketing purpose.

Like many low-fare players the world over the Malaysian carrier is in the middle of a big sale at the moment. If you want to down tools and take off for Phuket it has two flights a day from its Kuala Lumpur base. Go for it.

Anyhow, here are his first words as an Airline Business scribe:

"Here's a little something about myself. I have come to work at Airline Business for my work experience for a week. I got a work placement here by knowing an editor, through his son and asking him for a placement.

Yesterday the last remaining transatlantic all-premium carrier, Paris-based L'Avion, was sold to British Airways for €68 million ($107 million). L'Avion follows Maxjet, Eos and Silverjet in being confined to the history book. L'Avion clearly was in better shape than the other three, which all ceased operations permanently after filing for bankruptcy, as it sill had €33 million in cash at hand. Given that it launched with only €20 million, L'Avion impressively had made a profit in its first year and a half of operations.

But in today's environment of record high oil prices and intense competition across the North Atlantic, L'Avion's future as an independent was far from certain. So L'Avion's owners decided selling to BA, which will integrate L'Avion into its new transatlantic subsidiary OpenSkies, was in their best interest.

Some of them are pretty funny - even when you've heard them before it's still entertaining to read them again. At least he speaks his mind - I respect that.

My personal favourites are: "I am not a cloud bunny. I am not an aerosexual. I don't like aeroplanes. I never wanted to be a pilot like those other goons that populate the air industry", and "I'm probably just an obnoxious little bollocks. Who cares?"

Keep 'em coming Michael.

ITV is said to be close to signing a deal with UK carrier Monarch Airlines to lease an aircraft for the show. The idea is that 12 famous people (or more likely 12 people who were famous for 10 minutes, 10 years ago) will be trained up as cabin crew to fly passengers to Ibiza.

UK tabloid The Sun has put together some amusing photos to show what it thinks the crew of CelebAir will look like.

The show is expected to be launched this autumn, for those of you who are interested. I plan to be washing my hair.

Reggae legend Peter Tosh famously argued that marijuana could cure anything from asthma to glaucoma, but SAFER (Safer Alternative For Enjoyable Recreation) believes it can also "alleviate anxiety for people who are afraid to fly" and that "passengers could use pot in the smoking lounges at the airport as a safer alternative to alcohol".

SAFER is recommending that this option is made available to passengers at Denver International Airport, which the Denver Post says is "a hotspot for arrests of drunken, unruly airplane passengers".

Maybe they have a point - would it really be any worse than getting on a flight with a bunch of blokes on a stag weekend who've been getting beered up in the airport bars since before breakfast?

It could also be a good ancillary revenue driver - imagine how many on-board snacks a plane load of stoned passengers with the munchies would buy! 

Walsh did not indecently expose himself to express his displeasure, but he is reported to have written in BA's in-house newsletter that "the decision to allow President Bush and his fleet of aircraft to fly into Heathrow rather than a military base was one that all of Heathrow's users could have done without", and that he was "angry that this was allowed".

The report goes on to say that the unpopular US President's arrival and departure at Heathrow resulted in BA having to cancel 53 short-haul flights and delay another 260 flights for more than 30 minutes - which the carrier could have done without following the chaos that surrounded the opening of Terminal 5.

The Presidential visit affected 38,000 BA passengers, which will no doubt translate into another 38,000 people who are less than pleased with President Bush (who is pictured above in a White House photo by Eric Draper alongside UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown). 

Ah well, they can console themselves with the fact that a new US President will be elected this November!