EAA AirVenture Oshkosh (formerly the EAA Annual Convention and Fly-In), or just Oshkosh, is an annual
air show
An air show (or airshow, air fair, air tattoo) is a public event where aircraft are exhibited.
They often include aerobatics demonstrations, without they are called "static air shows" with aircraft parked on the ground.
The largest air show m ...
and gathering of
aviation
Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air craft such as hot air ...
enthusiasts held each summer at
Wittman Regional Airport
Wittman Regional Airport is a county-owned public-use airport located two nautical miles (4 km) south of the central business district of Oshkosh, a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, United States. A large portion at the south en ...
and adjacent
Pioneer Airport
Pioneer Airport is a privately owned airport located two nautical miles (4 km) south of the central business district of Oshkosh, a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, United States. The airport is located on the northwest edge of ...
in
Oshkosh, Wisconsin
Oshkosh is a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, of which it is the county seat. The city had a population of 66,816 in 2020, making it the ninth-largest city in Wisconsin. It is also adjacent to the Town of Oshkosh.
History
Oshkosh was ...
, United States. The southern part of the show grounds, as well as Camp Scholler, are located in the town of
Nekimi and a
base for
seaplane
A seaplane is a powered fixed-wing aircraft capable of takeoff, taking off and water landing, landing (alighting) on water.Gunston, "The Cambridge Aerospace Dictionary", 2009. Seaplanes are usually divided into two categories based on their tec ...
s on
Lake Winnebago
Lake Winnebago ( mez, Wenepekōw Nepēhsæh, oj, Wiinibiigoo-zaaga'igan, one, kanyataláheleˀ) is a shallow freshwater lake in the north central United States, located in east central Wisconsin. At 137,700 acres it is the largest lake entir ...
is in
Black Wolf
A black wolf is a melanistic colour variant of the gray wolf (''Canis lupus''). Black specimens were recorded among red wolves (''Canis rufus''), though the colour morph in this species is probably now extinct. Genetic research from the Sta ...
.
The airshow is arranged by the
Experimental Aircraft Association
The Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) is an international organization of aviation enthusiasts based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, United States. Since its inception, it has grown internationally with over 200,000 members and nearly 1,000 chapt ...
(EAA), an international
general aviation
General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...
organization based in Oshkosh, and is the largest of its kind in the world.
The show lasts a week, usually beginning on the Monday of the last full week in July. During the gathering, the airport's control tower, frequency 118.5, is the busiest in the world.
History
![Heritage - Flickr - Beige Alert (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Heritage_-_Flickr_-_Beige_Alert_%28cropped%29.jpg)
EAA was founded in
Hales Corners, Wisconsin
Hales Corners is a village in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 7,692 at the 2010 census. History
The land in the area that would eventually encompass the Village was first claimed as French, then British, and even ...
in 1953 by aircraft designer and military aviator veteran
Paul Poberezny
Paul Howard Poberezny (September 14, 1921 – August 22, 2013) was an American aviator, entrepreneur, and aircraft designer. He founded the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) in 1953, and spent the greater part of his life promoting hom ...
, who originally started the organization in the basement of his home for builders and restorers of recreational aircraft. Although
homebuilding is still a large part of the organization's activities, it has grown to include almost every aspect of recreational, commercial and military aviation, as well as
aeronautics
Aeronautics is the science or art involved with the study, design, and manufacturing of air flight–capable machines, and the techniques of operating aircraft and rockets within the atmosphere. The British Royal Aeronautical Society identifies ...
and
astronautics
Astronautics (or cosmonautics) is the theory and practice of travel beyond Earth's atmosphere into outer space. Spaceflight is one of its main applications and space science its overarching field.
The term ''astronautics'' (originally ''astronaut ...
. The first EAA
fly-in
A fly-in is a pre-arranged gathering of aircraft, pilots and passengers for recreational and social purposes.
Fly-ins may be formally or informally organised, members of the public may or may not be invited, the gathering may be at an airport o ...
was held in September 1953 at what is now
Timmerman Field as a small part of the Milwaukee Air Pageant, fewer than 150 people registered as visitors the first year and only a handful of airplanes attended the event. In 1959, the EAA fly-in grew too large for the Air Pageant and moved to
Rockford, Illinois
Rockford is a city in Winnebago County, Illinois, located in the far northern part of the state. Situated on the banks of the Rock River, Rockford is the county seat of Winnebago County (a small portion of the city is located in Ogle County). ...
. In 1970, when it outgrew its facilities at the Rockford airport (now
Chicago Rockford International Airport
Chicago Rockford International Airport , typically referred to as Rockford International Airport, Chicago Rockford, or by its IATA call letters, RFD, is a commercial airport in Rockford, Illinois, located northwest of Chicago., effective April 26 ...
), it moved to Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Much of the convention's growth and prominence on the world stage is credited to founder Paul Poberezny's son, aerobatic world champion and longtime EAA president
Tom Poberezny
Thomas Paul Poberezny (October 3, 1946 – July 25, 2022) was an American aerobatic world champion, as well as chairman of the annual Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) Fly-In and Convention (now named AirVenture) from 1977 to 2011 and pr ...
,
who became chairman of the event in 1977.
For many years, its official name was ''The EAA Annual Convention and Fly-In''. In 1998, the name was changed to ''AirVenture Oshkosh'',
but many regular attendees still call it as ''The Oshkosh Airshow'' or just ''Oshkosh''. For many years, access to the flight line was restricted to EAA members. In 1997, the fee structure for the show was changed allowing all visitors access to the entire grounds. EAA AirVenture holds nearly 1,000 forums and workshops,
in addition to their many vendors which bring a variety of aircraft supplies, general merchandise, and name brand sponsors such as
Piper
Piper may refer to:
People
* Piper (given name)
* Piper (surname)
Arts and entertainment Fictional characters Comics
* Piper (Morlock), in the Marvel Universe
* Piper (Mutate), in the Marvel Universe
Television
* Piper Chapman, lea ...
,
Cessna,
Cirrus
Cirrus may refer to:
Science
*Cirrus (biology), any of various thin, thread-like structures on the body of an animal
*Cirrus (botany), a tendril
* Infrared cirrus, in astronomy, filamentary structures seen in infrared light
*Cirrus cloud, a typ ...
, and many others.
The 2020 AirVenture convention and air show was canceled due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
.
Historical aircraft debuts
![ChristenEagleTakeoff](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1c/ChristenEagleTakeoff.jpg)
AirVenture has hosted the debut of numerous revolutionary designs.
Richard VanGrunsven
Richard E. "Dick" VanGrunsven (born 1939) is an American aircraft designer and kit plane manufacturer. The number of VanGrunsven-designed homebuilt aircraft produced each year in North America exceeds the combined production of all commercial ge ...
debuted his
Van's RV-3
The Van's RV-3 is a single-seat, single-engine, low-wing kit aircraft sold by Van's Aircraft.Vandermeullen, Richard: ''2012 Kit Aircraft Buyer's Guide'', Kitplanes, Volume 28, Number 12, December 2011, page 74. Belvoir Publications. Unlike m ...
at the 1972 AirVenture Oshkosh, a
homebuilt
Homebuilt machines are machines built outside of specialised workshops or factories. This can include different things such as kit cars or homebuilt computers, but normally it pertains to homebuilt aircraft, also known as amateur-built aircraft or ...
that defined new ways of aircraft performance. VanGrunsven would eventually go on to build more homebuilts than anyone else in the world, exceeding the annual production of all commercial
general aviation
General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...
companies combined. In 1975, aircraft designer
Burt Rutan
Elbert Leander "Burt" Rutan (; born June 17, 1943) is a retired American aerospace engineer and entrepreneur noted for his originality in designing light, strong, unusual-looking, and energy-efficient air and space craft. He designed the recor ...
introduced his
VariEze
The Rutan VariEze is a composite, canard aircraft designed by Burt Rutan. It is a high-performance homebuilt aircraft, hundreds of which have been constructed. The design later evolved into the Long-EZ and other, larger cabin canard aircraft ...
canard aircraft at Oshkosh, pioneering the use of moldless
glass-reinforced plastic
Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass cloth ...
construction in homebuilts, a technique that several aircraft went on to adopt in the ensuing years including
composite
Composite or compositing may refer to:
Materials
* Composite material, a material that is made from several different substances
** Metal matrix composite, composed of metal and other parts
** Cermet, a composite of ceramic and metallic materials
...
commercial airliner
An airliner is a type of aircraft for transporting passengers and air cargo. Such aircraft are most often operated by airlines. Although the definition of an airliner can vary from country to country, an airliner is typically defined as an ai ...
s.
At the 1987 AirVenture,
Cirrus Aircraft's founders, the
Klapmeier brothers
The Klapmeier brothers, Alan Lee Klapmeier (born October 6, 1958) and Dale Edward Klapmeier (born July 2, 1961), are retired American aircraft designers and aviation entrepreneurs who together founded the Cirrus Aircraft, Cirrus Design Corporati ...
, unveiled the
Cirrus VK-30 kit aircraft, which later led to the creation of the successful
SR20 and
SR22, the first designs to incorporate all-
composite
Composite or compositing may refer to:
Materials
* Composite material, a material that is made from several different substances
** Metal matrix composite, composed of metal and other parts
** Cermet, a composite of ceramic and metallic materials
...
fiberglass
Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass cloth ...
construction,
glass-panel cockpits and
airframe
The mechanical structure of an aircraft is known as the airframe. This structure is typically considered to include the fuselage, undercarriage, empennage and wings, and excludes the propulsion system.
Airframe design is a field of aerospa ...
ballistic parachute
A ballistic parachute, ballistic reserve parachute, or emergency ballistic reserve parachute, is a parachute ejected from its casing by a small explosion, much like that used in an ejection seat. The advantage of the ballistic parachute over a co ...
s for use in manufactured
light aircraft
A light aircraft is an aircraft that has a maximum gross takeoff weight of or less.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 308. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997.
Light aircraft are used as utility aircraft co ...
.
Other past notable designs introduced at AirVenture include Frank Christensen's
Christen Eagle II
The Christen Eagle, which later became the Aviat Eagle in the mid-1990s, is an aerobatic sporting biplane aircraft that has been produced in the United States since the late 1970s.
Design
Designed to compete with the Pitts Special by Frank Ch ...
aerobatic kit
biplane
A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...
in 1978,
Tom Hamilton's
Glasair 1 in 1980, and Lance Neibauer's
Lancair 200 in 1985.
Attendance
![OSH-2011](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/OSH-2011.jpg)
The EAA estimated the attendance in 2021 at 608,000 people.
In 2018, 2,714 international visitors registered from 87 nations. There were approximately 10,000 aircraft, 2,979 show planes, and 976 media representatives on-site from six continents, along with 867 commercial exhibitors.
In the past, attendance at the event was tabulated on a daily basis rather than on an individual basis.
It is unclear whether this practice still exists at EAA Airventure. For example, in 2006 the
Oshkosh Northwestern
The ''Oshkosh Northwestern'' is a daily newspaper based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
The ''Northwestern'' was owned by the Schwalm and Heaney families until 1998, when it was sold to Ogden Newspapers; Ogden traded the paper to Thomson Newspapers two ...
reported that attendance was estimated at 625,000 by the EAA.
The estimate was for total attendees each day, so one person attending 7 days would count as 7 attendees. The paper estimated that between 200,000 and 300,000 individuals attended the event.
The large number of aircraft arrivals and departures during the fly-in week makes the Wittman Field FAA control tower the busiest in the world for that week in number of movements. To accommodate the huge flow of aircraft around the airport and the nearby airspace, a special
NOTAM
A Notice to Airmen/Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM), is a notice filed with an aviation authority to alert aircraft pilots of potential hazards along a flight route or at a location that could affect the flight. NOTAMs are unclassified notices or ...
is published each year, choreographing the normal and emergency procedures to follow. More than 4,000 volunteers contribute approximately 250,000 hours before, during and after the event.
Economic impact
The EAA AirVenture fly-in has a large economic impact on the Oshkosh area as well as the state of Wisconsin. In 1982, the
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it is the primary newspaper. It is also the largest newspaper in the state of Wisconsin, where it is widely distributed. It is currently o ...
reported that the fly-in had a large economic benefit to the
Fox Valley region. At the time EAA estimated the benefit to be around $30 million ($ in ) and the Oshkosh Convention and Tourism bureau estimated it to be lower, at $21 million ($ in ). In 1989, the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce said that
Winnebago County had a $47 million benefit from the fly in. Additionally, a 1987 UW-Oshkosh study reported a $65 million ($ in ) benefit to the entire state of Wisconsin.
In 2008, a
UW-Oshkosh Center for Community Partnerships study showed a $110 million economic impact for the Oshkosh area. Of that, $84 million was direct impact with a $26 million multiplier from secondary spending. Additionally, the fly in provided 1,700 jobs and $39 million in labor income for
Winnebago,
Outagamie, and
Fond du Lac counties. In 2017, it was estimated that the event had an over $170 million economic impact on the surrounding area.
Air-traffic operation
![Oshkosh Tower](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Oshkosh_Tower.jpg)
In 1961, The Rockford EAA airshow had 10,000 aircraft movements. In 1971, the EAA airshow at Oshkosh brought in 600 planes and 31,653 movements. Today AirVenture brings in more than 10,000 airplanes. Special air traffic procedures are used to ensure safe, coordinated operations. For example, in 2014 the special flight procedures NOTAM was 32 pages long.
FAA air traffic staff, including controllers, supervisors, and managers, compete throughout the FAA's 17-state Central Terminal Service Area to work the event. In 2008, 172 air traffic professionals representing 56 facilities volunteered to staff the facilities at
Oshkosh (OSH),
Fond du Lac (FLD), and
Fisk. They wear bright pink shirts to stand out in the crowd.
Due to the
budget sequestration in 2013
The 2013 budget sequestration refers to the automatic spending cuts to United States federal government spending in particular categories of outlays that were initially set to begin on January 1, 2013, as a fiscal policy as a result of Budget ...
, the Federal Aviation Administration announced that it was not able to send resources to support the AirVenture. Rather than cancelling the event, the Experimental Aircraft Association was forced to sign a $447,000 contract to repay the government for FAA resources during the AirVenture. EAA filed a petition in Federal court arguing that the FAA could not withhold services without specific Congressional action. However, in March 2014 EAA signed a settlement agreement agreeing to pay the 2013 costs and a further agreement that guaranteed FAA participation for another nine years. The agreement required the association to reimburse the government for AirVenture specific costs that had been provided at government expense in the years prior to 2013.
Host airports
*
Wittman Regional Airport
Wittman Regional Airport is a county-owned public-use airport located two nautical miles (4 km) south of the central business district of Oshkosh, a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, United States. A large portion at the south en ...
(OSH): Airplanes
*
Pioneer Airport
Pioneer Airport is a privately owned airport located two nautical miles (4 km) south of the central business district of Oshkosh, a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, United States. The airport is located on the northwest edge of ...
(WS17): Helicopters and airships
*Ultralight Fun Fly Zone: Ultralights, powered parachutes, weight shift trikes, gyroplanes, homebuilt rotorcraft, and hot air balloons
* Vette/Blust Seaplane Base (96WI): Seaplanes
*
Fond du Lac County Airport
Fond du Lac County Airport is a county-owned public-use airport located 1 mile (2 km) west of the central business district of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, a city in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, United States. It is included in the F ...
(FLD):
Diversion airport Diversion airports are airports capable of handling a particular ETOPS
ETOPS () is an acronym for ''Extended-range Twin-engine Operations Performance Standards''—a special part of flight rules for one-engine-inoperative flight conditions. The I ...
, additional parking
*
Appleton International Airport
Appleton International Airport , formerly Outagamie County Regional Airport, is an airport located in Greenville, Wisconsin, United States, west of Appleton. It is included in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Plan of Integra ...
(ATW): Diversion airport, additional parking,
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the largest federal law enforcement agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security. It is the country's primary border control organization, charged with regulating and facilit ...
processing
* Planeacres Airport (2WN7): Emergency diversion airport (
Fisk approach)
[EAA AirVenture Oshkosh NOTAM (2019)](_blank)
/ref>
Technical operations
Several days prior to the event, members of the FAA's Technical Operation team from around the Central Service Area arrive in Oshkosh to set up the temporary communication facilities (mobile communication platforms, Fisk VFR approach control and Fond du Lac (FLD) tower). These technicians maintain the facilities during the event and tear down and store the equipment after AirVenture ends.
Volunteering
EAA AirVenture relies heavily on volunteers
Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...
who arrive in the weeks leading up to the air show. The tasks they perform range from parking cars and airplanes, to painting buildings, to helping set up and tear down concerts and shows presented by the EAA. Long-time volunteers receive free meals, tee-shirts, embroidered patches, and free admission into the EAA AirVenture event.
National Blue Beret
National Blue Beret (NBB) is a National Cadet Special Activity in the Civil Air Patrol
Civil Air Patrol (CAP) is a congressionally chartered, federally supported non-profit corporation that serves as the official civilian auxiliary of the United States Air Force (USAF). CAP is a volunteer organization with an aviation-minded mem ...
. The event is two weeks long and is set up so that the second week will overlap with the AirVenture airshow. Participants are Civil Air Patrol cadet and senior members who must go through a competitive selection process in order to attend the event. Participants help conduct event operations, including flight marshaling, crowd control, and emergency services.
See also
* EAA Aviation Museum
The EAA Aviation Museum, formerly the EAA AirVenture Museum (or Air Adventure Museum), is a museum dedicated to the preservation and display of historic and experimental aircraft as well as antiques, classics, and warbirds. The museum is lo ...
* EAA Biplane __NOTOC__
The EAA Biplane is a recreational aircraft that was designed by the Experimental Aircraft Association in the United States and marketed as plans for home-built aircraft.
Design and development
A preliminary design was produced for ...
* Jack Pelton
Jack J. Pelton is the Chairman of the Board and CEO of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), and the former CEO of the Cessna Aircraft Company, a subsidiary of Textron Inc (and now a brand of Textron Aviation). Before becoming Cessna's ...
* Project Schoolflight
* ''Sport Aviation'' magazine
* Steve Wittman
Sylvester Joseph "Steve" Wittman (April 5, 1904 – April 27, 1995) was an American air-racer and aircraft engineer.
An illness in Wittman's infancy claimed most of his vision in one eye, which convinced him from an early age that his dre ...
* Sun 'n Fun
Sun ’n Fun Aerospace Expo (officially styled SUN 'n FUN) is a nonprofit organization in Lakeland, Florida dedicated to the promotion of aviation education. It is best known for the annual week-long fly-in and airshow at Lakeland Linder Intern ...
* Tannkosh
Tannkosh was a large airshow and fly-in held annually in July at Tannheim, upper Swabia in Germany.
The event was the closest European equivalent to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh and, although smaller than the Oshkosh airshow, Tannkosh attracted hundr ...
* Young Eagles
The Young Eagles is a program created by the US Experimental Aircraft Association designed to give children between the ages of 8 to 17 an opportunity to experience flight in a general aviation airplane while educating them about aviation. The pr ...
References
External links
EAA AirVenture Oshkosh
Experimental Aircraft Association
"#OSH18 - EAA AirVenture at Oshkosh 2018"
(YouTube video) - overview shows the scale of the event and a variety of aircraft & places
{{International Airshows
Air shows in the United States
Wisconsin culture
Oshkosh, Wisconsin
Tourist attractions in Winnebago County, Wisconsin
Recurring events established in 1953
Experimental Aircraft Association
Aviation in Wisconsin
Events in Wisconsin
Summer events in the United States
1953 establishments in Wisconsin