For the rest of my life Iwill remember 2008 as the year I took the pilot’s pilgrimage to Oshkosh for thevery first time. Those who know me know that I love my gadgets. So given thatyear in and year out EAA’s AirVenture sees the launch of the latest andgreatest aviation gadgetry, I’ve had to account for why I hadn’t yet made thetrip to Oshkosh. Well, no longer. 

For those who have made the trek (possibly several times)there’s a chance that reading these words brings back some of the awe you felton your first visit to Oshkosh. For those yet to get there, maybe you’ll beencouraged to do so. Either way, I tell this you with the deepest sincerity. Ihave never felt so strongly the bond with fellow pilots, the passion for allthings aviation, and the pure love of flight. AirVenture is simply incredible.A colossal event that all pilots absolutely must experience.

The legendary North 40 looked like just about every tiedownarea you might have ever seen… all at once… and then some! GA aircraft for asfar as the eye can see. Cessnas, Pipers, Mooneys, Bonanzas, kit planes – if youcan name it, you’ll find it in the North 40. This is the parking area forvisitors flying directly into Whitman Regional (KOSH, of course). The vast majorityof these visitors set up camp right next to their birds. There are also hotelsin the area but they fill up months and months in advance. As with most thingsaviation, planning is key.

Being our first trip to OSH (as the ol’ hands call it!) wedecided to land and stay off site. The arrival procedures might be a littleintimidating for first-timers – what with the three-at-a-time landings and all.It goes without saying that careful study of the arrival/departure proceduresNOTAM is essential. The good folks in “The World’s Busiest Control Tower”conduct the symphony of aircraft movements with masterful precision. I’ll be anactive participant next time around.

At the center of the main exhibition area on the day of ourarrival was the massive, beluga whale-shaped Boeing DreamLifter – one of onlythree modified 747-400s which was designed to ferry parts for the DreamLiner.Surrounding it were warbirds, fighter jets, military helicopters, and even anold Quantas airliner. Towards the main gate were exhibits of brand spanking newmodels from virtually every manufacturer.

Among the many gadgets availablefor tinkering with were new GPS units for air and auto that feature multimediafunctions, impressive new noise reduction headsets, and glass panels of all shapesand sizes, and prototypes of portable ADS-B receivers that we’ll see in 2009.

I also learned quite a bit about theuse of in-flight oxygen well below the flight levels. So much so that I decidedto take advantage of a show special and equip myself with portable oxygen –something that paid dividends right away, on the flight home. More on that in acoming story.

When not browsing, admiring, andshopping there was plenty of opportunity for learning. Seminars held in everycorner of the grounds on any topic a pilot would be interested in. Fromlearning how to build a wing for an RV-8, to a display of the US Customs canineinterdiction team, to a discussion on passenger flights into space by SirRichard Branson, there was something for everyone from open to close.

Besides Sir Richard, celebritiesin attendance included John Travolta, Harrison Ford, and Gary Sinise. But forme the ultimate star of the show was the F-22 Raptor. Amazingly, it’s actuallypossible to become so used to the constant airshow that can find yourselfmissing out on much of the air-ballet taking place above by merely payingattention to where you’re walking. That all changes, however, when the Raptoris in flight. This is a spectacular aircraft that even while it was hardlybreaking a sweat left the crowd in complete awe. It was pure poetry when theRaptor danced in the sky with a classic P-51 Mustang.

The remarkable thing is that afterfour days at OSH and having seen and experienced what I did, I may have takenin at best half of what AirVenture had to offer. There really is THAT much! Aswe lifted off from our Wisconsin runway headed home I was left satisfied butdefinitely eager to return. So begins the countdown to the 57^thannual AirVenture in 2009.

Fly safe(r).