Image 1 of 129
First time back in Wisconsin since our 2006 trip.
Image 2 of 129
There was a lot of that going around at AirVenture
Image 3 of 129
Nothing much says "Oshkosh" any better . . . .
Image 4 of 129
Lots of futuristic stuff on display, like this Icon A5 amphibious convertible
Image 5 of 129
About as close as we've ever been to the Goodyear Blimp
Image 6 of 129
You could buy a ride for around $450. We spectated . . .
Image 7 of 129
One day it flew almost over our RV
Image 8 of 129
We were parked in a parking lot across the freeway from the airport, along with about 75 other rigs
Image 9 of 129
We like the attitude of this honey wagon . . .
Image 10 of 129
Some replica World War One planes drew attention
Image 11 of 129
This one was the one the Red Baron flew in against Snoopy and his Sopwith Camel
Image 12 of 129
The "Fly Market" sold lots of stuff, airplane related and not . . .
Image 13 of 129
They look comfortable . . .
Image 14 of 129
Reportedly the only flyable privately-owned Harrier jet.
Image 15 of 129
The gathering celerated the 75th anniversary of the DC3, and there were a lot of them about
Image 16 of 129
The fusilage of a sailplane built to go to 90,000 ft or higher . . .
Image 17 of 129
The historical planes area is like a living museum . . .
Image 18 of 129
Most of these aircraft are at least 50 years old
Image 19 of 129
All seemed to be very well maintained
Image 20 of 129
Al uses his rented "mobility chair" to save the old knees
Image 21 of 129
Pretty good food, too . .
Image 22 of 129
Some of these ultra-lights look too fragile to fly
Image 23 of 129
Lots of designs for homebuilt lightweights . . .
Image 24 of 129
This pilot has all the comforts . . .
Image 25 of 129
Looks like a flying golf cart
Image 26 of 129
There was a separate grass strip just for these lightweights
Image 27 of 129
This replica 1928 Sikorsky S-38 was seen in the film "The Aviator"
Image 28 of 129
After leaving Oshkosh, it became the first S-38 to cross the Atlantic
Image 29 of 129
Walking the airport and looking at all the planes is exhausting
Image 30 of 129
You'll see every kind of aircraft . . this "VariEze" (very easy) is one of Burt Rutan's designs
Image 31 of 129
Some are built for aerobatics
Image 32 of 129
For $35, you could take a ride in an old Ford Tri-Motor
Image 33 of 129
Sleek . . . This is a Long-EZ
Image 34 of 129
There were lots of WW2 era warbirds about
Image 35 of 129
Some you could "tour"
Image 36 of 129
Takes a fair amount of spare change for this hobby . . .
Image 37 of 129
Another DC3. There were about 40 of them at the gathering
Image 38 of 129
Another tour opportunity - this is a Douglas A26 "Invader" light bomber from WW2
Image 39 of 129
Up close and personal
Image 40 of 129
A new version of a highway to skyway vehicle . . . the Transition first flew in March 2009
Image 41 of 129
Another sexy prototype
Image 42 of 129
Ford, a major sponsor, brought their own robot pitchman
Image 43 of 129
Aircraft of all kinds, including this flying radar station
Image 44 of 129
The EAA Museum is one of the better airplane museums . . .
Image 45 of 129
The place is packed with interesting aircraft
Image 46 of 129
It's a replica of the original Wright Bros Kitty Hawk plane . . .
Image 47 of 129
And this is a piece of fabric from the wing of the original . . .
Image 48 of 129
This 1931 Pitcairn Autogyro was the first aircraft to land in Yosemite Nat'l Park
Image 49 of 129
This one carried SC Johnson himself to South America in search of a source for Carnuba Wax
Image 50 of 129
It's kind of amazing all these things actually flew
Image 51 of 129
This sporty homebuilt flew 13,000 miles as an EAA ambassador in 1960
Image 52 of 129
Supposedly the world's smallest working plane. 86" wingspan, and under 10' long, with room for a very small pilot
Image 53 of 129
One of several Rutan-designed aircraft in the museum
Image 54 of 129
That's a replica of Space Ship One, the first private rocket ship to carry men into space
Image 55 of 129
A pusher prop job with an appropriate nickname . . .
Image 56 of 129
The original Aerocar, one of only a half-dozen ever built.
Image 57 of 129
A small collection of racing planes in formation
Image 58 of 129
Sweet . . .
Image 59 of 129
A wing-walking rig up close
Image 60 of 129
Back outside, more neat planes
Image 61 of 129
This oldster was getting ready to fly
Image 62 of 129
It's a cluster balloob, licenses and legal, that flew from Oshkosh to Michigan. Picture swiped from the internet
Image 63 of 129
They say it's the only rocket-powered helecopter in the world. They call it "Firefly".
Image 64 of 129
We went to see airshows. Every show started with skydivers, seen getting ready
Image 65 of 129
They were mostly dropped from a DC-3 named Duggy
Image 66 of 129
Duggy is the model for a cartoon series and a couple of kids books
Image 67 of 129
Every show opened with the jumpers flying the flag . . .
Image 68 of 129
There was always a crowd for the airshow
Image 69 of 129
Every show featured lots of warbirds
Image 70 of 129
The formations of many vintage planes were impressive . . .
Image 71 of 129
Talk about impressive . . .
Image 72 of 129
The aerobatics were always fun.
Image 73 of 129
In your heart, you know they're not supposed to do that . . .
Image 74 of 129
Large crowds enjoyed every show . . .
Image 75 of 129
These guys are real athletes, pulling many G's as they perform
Image 76 of 129
Performing teams are always fun with precision formations
Image 77 of 129
The graceful maneuvers are great
Image 78 of 129
Not recommended after eating spicy food . . .
Image 79 of 129
Lots of DC-3s flew in various paint jobs
Image 80 of 129
And many vintage aircraft showed off
Image 81 of 129
Jet fighters are impressive (and loud). And all privately owned
Image 82 of 129
You wouldn't expect a twin Beech to do aerobatics
Image 83 of 129
But it does . . .
Image 84 of 129
Varooom!
Image 85 of 129
We heard it costs upwards of $5000 a hour to fly one of these . . .
Image 86 of 129
The smoke trails make it easy to follow the twists and turns
Image 87 of 129
Gene Soucy has been a top aerobatic performer for many years
Image 88 of 129
That looks uncomfortable . . .
Image 89 of 129
Are helicopters supposed to do that?
Image 90 of 129
Oh well, since everybody's doing it . . . .
Image 91 of 129
That little fellow in the right rear is NOT trying to land.
Image 92 of 129
Looks like she's going to wing-walk . . .
Image 93 of 129
She sure is . .
Image 94 of 129
Oh jeeze. Please use both hands!
Image 95 of 129
Old bombers are always impressive . . .
Image 96 of 129
All the way from Central Point, OR - outfitted for fire-fighting
Image 97 of 129
It can drop thousands of gallons of water almost anywhere
Image 98 of 129
This sailplane has an electric motor, and can take off unassisted . . .
Image 99 of 129
An impressive lineup of DC3s
Image 100 of 129
Several had been painted in the vintage colors of airlines
Image 101 of 129
Some were made-up airlines, but still . . .
Image 102 of 129
Prety neat seeing these oldtimers cruising . . .
Image 103 of 129
Co-pilot surveys the crowd from the taxiway
Image 104 of 129
Seemed like we were really close to the action . . .
Image 105 of 129
Not as close as the "official" photographers . . .
Image 106 of 129
Big fella . . .
Image 107 of 129
The Blue Angels didn't perform, but one did pay a visit . . .
Image 108 of 129
Very loud poetry in motion . . .
Image 109 of 129
Smoke rising from a simulated bombing run . . .
Image 110 of 129
The Wall of Fire - a simulated napalm drop . . .
Image 111 of 129
First you saw it, then you felt the heat, and then the sound arrived. Awesome!
Image 112 of 129
Performers flying right side up were the exception . . .
Image 113 of 129
We liked the performance teams
Image 114 of 129
That's pretty awesome . .
Image 115 of 129
Vietnam-era aircraft. Loud and impressive
Image 116 of 129
There's that privately owned Harrier, just hanging in the air
Image 117 of 129
It's loud, but very impressive
Image 118 of 129
For the last show, we managed to snag front row seating . . . two hours before the show
Image 119 of 129
The Aeroshell team was always well polished and professional
Image 120 of 129
Do you believe in UFOs?
Image 121 of 129
How about now?
Image 122 of 129
The night-time airshow featured aerobatics and fireworks.
Image 123 of 129
Light your plane on fire and go flying. How great is that?
Image 124 of 129
After the airshow, a really nice fireworks display
Image 125 of 129
It was continuous - almost like a constant finale - for 20 minutes
Image 126 of 129
A fitting conclusion to a wonderful week
Image 127 of 129
And we were in the front row!
Image 128 of 129
And one more Wall of Fire. Wow!
Image 129 of 129
Finally, where we caught the bus back to the RV - and the end of our slideshow.