I’m Going Back To The Greatest Plane Celebration On Earth And I Want To Meet You There

Every July, aviation fans from around the world descend into the normally quiet city of Oshkosh, Wisconsin for a celebration of epic proportions. EAA AirVenture Oshkosh attracts hundreds of thousands of people, over 10,000 planes, tens of thousands of campers, and tens of millions of eyes on social media for a week of nearly non-stop aviation action. I’m going back this year and I want to meet you when I’m out there! That aside, let’s look at why you should go to the greatest plane celebration on Earth.

First, I want to talk some numbers with you because they were absolutely insane. The Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) says it had an incredible record year with EAA AirVenture 2023. The organization says over 677,000 people visited the event in 2023, an all-time record. It’s even more impressive when you hear that the last all-time record was set in 2022, when 650,000 people went to AirVenture.

EAA says that of those 677,000 people, 13,000 of them touched down at Wittman Regional Airport and either camped in their aircraft or next to it in a tent. Another 40,000 people overfilled Camp Scholler with RVs and tents. I was one of those people and found that Camp Scholler was such a madhouse that people had to camp in fields outside of the campground because there just wasn’t space for everyone.

EAA further says that of the people who visited the show, 2,372 attendees hailed from 93 countries, and those were just the people who bothered to tell EAA they weren’t from the United States. The organization thinks the true number of international attendees was much higher.

The statistics regarding the aircraft are also mind-boggling, with over 10,000 aircraft arrivals for the event, 21,883 total takeoffs and landings over 11 days, and 3,365 showplanes across all types.

What I find awesome is that AirVenture wasn’t just hundreds of thousands of people partying through a Wisconsin heatwave. Oh yeah, it was hot during the event with temps bumping up near 100 degrees with that great Midwestern humidity. Anyway, over 1,000 attendees raised over $2 million for aviation education and in total, the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh estimates that AirVenture injects $170 million into the local economy every year.

Why You Should Come Party In Oshkosh

If you haven’t been to this show, you might be wondering why so many people are willing to brave blazing heat just to look at some planes.

A lot of it is because of what you read above. This event is simply gargantuan in size. Wittman Regional Airport briefly turns into the busiest control tower in the world as it handles conga lines of arriving and departing aircraft as well as all of the different planes buzzing around the event practically around the clock.

Much of the show runs parallel to runway 18R/36L, which runs a long 8,002 feet. At the other end of the airport, you have runway 9/27, which runs 6,179 feet. If you were to walk the entire length of the show as I do, you will be walking miles each day. And you will be walking so much because the aircraft areas evolve every day.

Every year, the event is host to some incredible pieces of aviation history. This year’s rockstar lineup is themed after kicking Hitler’s backside in World War II. From EAA:

Boeing Plaza will be home for a collection of notable World War II-era aircraft on July 24-25 as EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2024 commemorates the Allies “turning the tide” in 1944. Among the aircraft to take part in the commemoration include both airworthy B-29s, Doc and FIFI, the Avro Lancaster Mk. X bomber, a C-47, a C-53, two razorback P-47s, and a Hellcat.

In addition to the aircraft on Boeing Plaza, a number of warbirds will take part in the week’s air shows. A C-47 from the World War II Airborne Demonstration Team will fly during the afternoon air show on July 24 carrying paratroopers. The team will jump from the C-47 using traditional round canopy parachutes, reminiscent of the paratroopers of the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions who risked their lives in Normandy.

The C-53 will stay on Boeing Plaza, where a group of reenactors will paint invasion stripes on the airplane in between the afternoon and night air shows on July 24. The painting will be done similarly to how it was done by soldiers 80 years ago. Supporting the warbirds on Boeing Plaza will be a C-130 from the Connecticut Air National Guard. This aircraft is also painted with invasion stripes to commemorate the D-Day anniversary. The Lancaster is scheduled to join both B-29s in flying in formation as part of the night air show on July 24. The trio of aircraft flying together marks a rare occurrence in air show history and creates one of those “Only in Oshkosh” moments.

Boeing Plaza, shown on the map above, is usually home to at least one mammoth aircraft. This year, you’ll be able to gaze upon the eight-engine might of the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress.

If military aircraft aren’t your jam, aircraft visionary Burt Rutan will be there and a handful of homebuilt aircraft will be celebrating their anniversaries, including the Kitfox, the Swearingen SX-300, the RLU-1 Breezy, and the Zenith 600/601.

There will be something for everyone at this event from rotorcraft to all sorts of seaplanes. A lot of magic of EAA AirVenture is simply finding what attendees brought. That’s how I found the sweet Ercoupe last year and a few other planes I still need to write about.

Stop By And Meet Me!

Last year, I attempted to hold an Autopian meetup outside of the event and things didn’t work out. I held it on a Sunday when everyone was trying to get home or had already gone home. Plus, roads were detoured and navigation was just terrible. So this year, I’m going to do something a bit nutty. I’m going to invite any Autopian reader to hang out at my camper throughout the week. Once I plant my stakes down I’ll post my location and when I’ll be around.

If you want to say hi, just stroll on over and knock on my door if I’m not already outside. I’ll hand you a cold snack and we can talk planes, trains, automobiles, or anything else. Otherwise, I’ll try to catch you in the show as well.

This time we’re also testing a different truck! Ford will be loaning us a bright red Super Duty to comfortably haul with, so that should be a ton of fun.

If you want to join in on the fun, EAA AirVenture Oshkosh runs from July 22 to 28. Daily tickets are $45 if you’re an EAA member or $63 if you’re a non-member. Veterans and active military pay $45 and youth 18 and under are free! Come on Sunday and it’s just $22 or $27, respectively. There are also multiple-day tickets that lower the daily cost, such as weekly pass that runs $145. There is a campground there, and that’s where you’ll find me for the whole week of the event. Look for a brown and white travel trailer with “Adirondack” on its sides.

(Images: Author, unless otherwise noted.)