Page 30 - Volume 20 Number 7

jet trainers, presenting a spectacular display of precision flying with up to nine ships in formation.
Given the building shortage of qualified pilots and technicians in aviation, a week-long Job Fair is being held in AirVenture’s Aviation Gateway Park, where job seekers and employees can connect. Assisted by JSfirm.com, an aviation career website, the job fair will operate from 9 to 5 each day.
Getting There
It happens every year. Some clueless individual will decide to “fly to Oshkosh” without availing himself of the extensive NOTAM and will create a major headache for controllers and pilots. An entertaining narrative in the news section at the http://www.eaa.org/ en/airventure website, titled “Bubba Goes To AirVenture,” tells of an actual arrival by such a pilot in 2015; if you read it, you’ll be motivated to download the actual NOTAM from www.airventure.org. There are
some changes this year, including taxiway closures on the north side and new departure frequencies.
Flying into the show isn’t difficult, if you’re prepared. Coming in VFR, using the Fisk Arrival, is the preferred method, but operating IFR or on the Turbine/ Warbird Arrival is possible, as long as you can accept being worked into the string of widely-varying aircraft at the end. You may be sharing airspace with a World War II fighter, a Ford Tri-Motor, an aerobatic biplane or a no-radio antique. During VFR arrival, transponders are to be turned off within 30 miles of Wittman Field, since they would be essentially useless in the swarm, and you just join up to follow the old railroad roadbed from the town of Ripon, 15 miles southwest, staying in nose- to-tail spacing at 1,800 or 2,300 MSL. If there’s a weakness in the system, it’s negotiating the split into two different streams of traffic at Fisk, a hamlet 5 miles southwest
of Oshkosh. Fisk Approach will assign either an east-west or north-south runway at that point, requiring attention to navigation and frequency selection as the string of aircraft diverges.
When landing, be prepared to demonstrate a bit of precision; you can be asked to land not just on the runway (or a parallel taxiway pressed into service for the show) but to touch down on a literal spot on the runway, to help maintain the special spacing allowed for the show. Aircraft under 6,000 pounds are expected to exit the runway without delay, which can mean rolling off into the grass along the side, used for a taxiway controlled by flag- persons. When departing, follow the flaggers to the runway in use, monitor the appropriate frequency, and follow the NOTAM routing out of the area to avoid incoming flights. Windshield cue-cards are to be displayed for the marshallers.
Avoiding the AirVenture horde is best done by landing at Appleton (KATW) or Fond du Lac (KFLD). Slot reservations are required for IFR operations during AirVenture, so if you are coming in unexpected, anticipate an early IFR cancellation, perhaps with a landing at Madison, Green Bay or Juneau. Rental cars will be booked months in advance, as will lodging; planning for AirVenture must start early.
It Is Worth It?
Most definitely, it’s worth it; mere description does not prepare one for the spectacle of thousands of people with their eyes and hearts on the sky, experiencing aviation in a dozen forms. Whether it’s homebuilt aircraft, light sport and ultralight flying, antiques and classics, aerobatics, warbirds, seminars, construction, flea market bargains, commercial displays and booths, avionics and engines, or even drones, it’s all at AirVenture.
If you’ve attended other mass gatherings, like motorsport events,
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28 • TWIN & TURBINE
JULY 2016