As summer begins to heat up, that can mean only one thing to true-blue aviation enthusiasts. Yup, AirVenture is coming at us like a jet fighter.
In mere weeks, the annual migration of tens of thousands of pilots will start to converge on the small town of Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The population swells from 50,000 to almost a quarter million. It’s been called the summer celebration of flight and that is one of the more accurate tag lines the Experimental Aircraft Association marketing department has invented.
At these shows, journalists like myself are often asked, “What’s new this year…what have you seen that you never saw before?”
The questions are difficult for two reasons. One is that AirVenture is huge and to think you’ve seen it all is a conceit. Despite dashing around looking for all the cool new hardware — or these days that can often be software — I know I’ll miss all kinds of things.
Nonetheless, I am aware of some new products that will debut and I’m aware of a few announcements that will be made regarding projects nearing completion.
The second reason is that many companies prefer to hold their news until they arrive at the show. It is sure that some secretive projects are still in progress even as I write this, so we simply won’t know all that’s new until we arrive at the show and examine every nook and cranny.
One of my areas of focus for several years has been the LSA Mall located not far from the forum buildings. For 2013, this plan has evolved. The Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association (LAMA) will not be hosting the LSA Mall for the first time in many years. Instead, LAMA chose to go with an indoor display because many tens of thousands of attendees populate the display halls and they might miss LSA exhibitors who are scattered all over the immense real estate that is AirVenture.
At its new display, LAMA will provide some attention-getting video and will be prepared to help folks find any LSA company, even those that may not attend the big show. LAMA will be in spaces 4100-4101 at the south end of Aisle C in Hangar D. AirVenture takes off July 29 and runs through Aug. 4.
Dan, you are and always have been a paid shill for LAMA and some of their most disreputable manufacturers (like CZAW)… even making excuses for the sport aircraft industry’s early epidemic fraud and subsequent noncompliance with aircraft origin documentation and LSA regs. “Nice” to see you’re still at it and duping GAN into printing your infomercials.
People — don’t waste your time being exposed to LAMA indoor propaganda… go to the LSA Mall and see the airplanes and talk to the reps and any owners hanging about. Maybe get a demo ride then or schedule one for down the road. And no… I’m not a rep of anyone but myself and the rapidly fading traditions of responsibility, transparency and honesty that once were central to GA in general and aviation safety in particular before marketing and self-serving greed took over.