Settling things

Mud. After nearly three inches of rain over the past week, we’re dealing with ground that is not very sturdy in the prime areas where we’re looking to place building and the like. It’s been back and forth between rain and dry over the last month, so hopefully we’ll get things on a more consistent level in the coming days. In places where grass exists, we’re starting to see things green up a little.

We are moving some buildings around, though. The Partner Resource Center, which is the facility used by exhibitors, advertisers and other sponsors, is heading to its new location a few hundred feet east of its previous location north of Exhibit Hangar C.

In other areas, footings are being poured for buildings. The phone company is here connecting the hundreds of phone lines that exist right in the Exhibit Hangar area. Water supplies are being run to the food locations, and grading contractors are getting ready to put down the porous asphalt that will be on the angled walkways starting at the Main Gate.

Even the landscapers are ready, although the rain has slowed their ability to get things grass and shrubs started on the grounds.

H.G. Frautschy notes that a couple of administrative structures in back of the Vintage Aircraft Red Barn have gone away. The small computer ops building has been demolished, since those functions will be in the new Vintage hangar. Also, the while trailer that served as an administrative office will be rolled away from that area.


In Warbirds, we brought down a small building near the warbirds tower to make room for the new pavilion building that I described a couple of months back.

One final thing that you’ll notice on the grounds this year are what we’re calling “wayfinding stations.” These towers will include maps and information to better move around the grounds. We’ll start with five towers in strategic places on the site. One will be located at the EAA Welcome Center just west of AeroShell Square. Others will be on the flight line, at Warbirds, Homebuilt Aircraft area, Vintage and Ultralights. We’re doing the final tweaks to the design right now, and I’m eager to show you what they’ll look like in the next couple of weeks.

We’re inside three months to opening day, so things are definitely speeding up here in Oshkosh!

Dust is Flying!

Remember all the worries I had a few weeks back about how wet and soggy and mushy the grounds were? Scratch that. The weather has been beautiful this week and the grounds dried like there was a sponge 50 feet below the surface sucking all the surface moisture away.

The great weather (maybe 70 degrees today!) means we can get to landscaping chores. This week we’ve been spending time near AeroShell Square, in areas near the Ford Pavilion and other locations. We’re also working in the homebuilt area and back toward the Main Gate.

(One side note – With the demise of Eclipse Aviation, we’re getting questions about what will be there in 2009. EAA’s business development guru, Jeff Kaufman, said that Hawker Beechcraft will be taking over that area this year, with others sliding into their old position just west of AeroShell Square).

This weekend we’ll welcome 15 volunteers from University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh’s “Hands On Oshkosh” volunteer program, who will be here to help with fine landscaping work, such as around electrical pedestals and the like. Those areas have to be done by hand since large machines could accidentally bump the pedestals and cause all kinds of other problems. We really appreciate their time and efforts.

Next week we’ll have some of the contractors on the grounds, fine-grading roads and doing the prep work for such projects as asphalt on the road edges, biofilters and all that.

One other question that we had this week was regarding Aeromart. Yes, Aeromart will be back in 2009, but in a new location. It will be adjacent to the new Flymarket area, just to the south and west of Exhibit Hangar D. Everyone who enjoyed that aircraft parts consignment area can stop by again this year. EAA Chapter 252 from here in Oshkosh will be operating the area.

Well, since the weather is this nice, it’s time to get back to work!

Springing Up in Vintage

We have the opportunity to sneak in one more posting before the Easter weekend, so Vintage Aircraft Association executive director H.G. Frautschy has some news about the new type club/workshop hangar in that area...

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Hi, everyone. The exterior of the new Vintage Hangar is about 95 percent done, with the sliding doors hung, the exterior windows and passage doors installed, and ¾ of the roof shingles installed. The biggest news of the week was the pouring and finishing of the concrete floor in the hangar, nearly 7,000 square feet of slab poured over the course of two days. Here are a few photos of the work done to date.

With the doors hung, the opening is 40 feet, with a pair of sliding door panels.

Below is the view looking southeast, with the conference/hospitality room on the right. There’s still a bit of snow mixed in that gravel, grass and dirt pile in the foreground.

The concrete coated beadboard outer sheathing on the Hangar is accented by poly-plastic trim, all of which will be painted in the coming months. There’s still plenty of volunteer work party tasks to be accomplished in the coming months!

Here is an aerial shot courtesy of EAA’s Chief Photographer, Jim Koepnick. It certainly drives home the great impact this building will have on the overall look and feel of the VAA area. The new building is at the lower center of the photo, with the VAA Red Barn to its right and Theater in the Woods above it.

The interior of the hangar is now just about ready for the volunteer corps, thanks to the installation of the new concrete slab. The surface finish is smooth with Fibermesh in the concrete, giving the floor a nice finish for walking, while enhancing its resistance to cracking.

End of a Towering Era

As these photos show, the demolition has begun on the old control tower at Wittman Regional Airport. It’s kind of a melancholy day, since this structure was an icon for so many years here at Oshkosh.



We at EAA have been asked many times over the past few months if there could have been a different outcome than tearing down the tower. The short answer is no, but let me walk through the timeline so there’s a better understanding of why:

When Winnebago County (which owns the airport – EAA simply leases the property for the event) contracted to build a new control tower, the construction company also received the demolition and disposal rights for the old tower. After the new tower was completed, the construction company officially owned the old tower.

It took more months than expected to move the remainder of the FAA equipment out of the old tower. After that, though, the way was cleared to bring down the old tower.



Was there a possibility that the old tower could be preserved by EAA or the county? Even if either party had the desire to do so, the old tower would not have been kept as simply an empty shrine. And there were very costly items that would have been needed in any restoration. For instance, there was no elevator or handicapped access to the tower, which would be required if it would welcome visitors or staff. The heating and ventilating system had been makeshift for many years, and there were some structural issues beginning to emerge, as one would find on a 45-year-old building.

We’ve also been asked about giving away or selling the bricks from the old tower. We had even talked with county officials about selling bricks, since local governments are always looking for ways to make extra revenue. Unfortunately, the construction company did not wish to take the extra time and expense of bringing the tower down brick-by-brick. Also, most of the bricks have asbestos covering or been exposed to asbestos, so we were told that the bricks could not distributed to the public without an expensive cleanup, if it was even possible.


We’ll probably see the teardown last several days, then the site will be cleaned up. What will go in that space for 2009, if anything, is still unknown. It certainly will look different this year out on the flight line, though.

Turning the Corner

At least I hope we’re turning the corner on the seasons. There’s the possibility of more snow this weekend, but we got about two inches of spring rain on Monday and Tuesday. Remarkably, with the sun and wind on Wednesday and Thursday the grounds dried fairly well.

It’s still kind of muddy on the grounds, so there’s more planning right now than actual projects. All the contractors will be having a powwow here within the next two weeks to finalize the exact order of getting things done. In a project of this size, there are so many people dependent on one another. Excavation crews, builders, electricians and everyone else want to know when they should be the grounds. And as anyone who has ever built anything knows, change orders cost time and money.

All in all, there’s a lot of eagerness to get going. It’s been a long winter, and it still doesn’t seem to want to end, but everybody wants to get outside and finish the job.

We’re also helping the Wisconsin Public Service Farm Show prepare for their event on the grounds next Tuesday through Thursday. That show uses all four exhibit hangars and the ground between them. Lots of big farm machinery will be here, most of which looks like it would really fun to play with. I’d like to snag a few pieces of the farm machinery after the show to help with the site construction, especially those rock pickers and seeders…

The new Vintage Aircraft type club/workshop building is coming along well. We should have the roof closed up this week. It took a while to finish the walls, since we had a few days of high winds a couple of weeks back.

There’s one change in the location of the Lost and Found area. Instead of at the Main Gate with the Oshkosh and regional/state Visitor Information booth, we’ve decided to put Lost and Found in a building just to the southwest of the SkyShoppe along the flight line. There are some reasons for that: That area supports the entire grounds, so a more centrally located spot is good for those from the North 40 aircraft camping area or the south end instead of going all the way to the Main Gate. The building by the Main Gate will now exclusively have information about Oshkosh and other cities in the region, as well as the state of Wisconsin.

We’re also finalizing locations for other buildings, such as the Protect Our Planes volunteers, program distribution and others, which we’ll talk about in coming weeks.

One Bite At A Time

Everybody’s in a much brighter mood around here this week. The temps broke into the high 50s and the 60s earlier this week and we lost much of the snow that seems to have been here for what seems like the last five decades.

As the snow leaves us, reality also starts to sink in on how much needs to get done before the gates open on July 27. It’s a challenge, to be sure, but it will be exciting as we accomplish each step.

There will be a couple changes in food stands at Oshkosh this year. With things moving around on the site, there’s an opportunity to adjust some food stands to prime traffic areas as the new look takes shape.

If you started attending AirVenture before 1995, you’ll recognize one of the new food locations. It will be at the corner of Waukau Avenue and Knapp Street Road, kitty-corner from the new control tower. Back in the “old” days, before Winnebago County expanded the airport property, the private owner had food service in their front yard. The old Shakey’s Pizza, which no longer exists in Oshkosh, set up shop there at the time.

Just an aside: I also recall that they had campers set up in the old cattle pasture there, too. I never was sure if that area kept all the “natural features” even as people put up their tents…

In addition, the food stands that last year were east of the FAA building, next to the Honda Pavilion, are now gone. Between the food stands just to the north across Waukau Ave., next to the Wearhouse and just east of AeroShell Square, that area is still well serviced.

Even with the relocated Main Gate, the Sacred Heart food stand will be staying in the same position on the newly rerouted Forest Home Avenue. There will also be a food stand at the intersection of Waukau Avenue and the northeast walkway leading from the Main Gate, as shown on the map here (click on it for a larger version).
I’ve been spending a lot of time over the past two weeks trying to put the final details on the basis site map that will be used for all the other maps you’ll be seeing in the coming weeks. It’s been a lot of work, but it’s good in some ways, since it focused us on finalizing locations for some areas where we still had questions.

One thing goes through my mind on occasion as we put the pieces together for 2009: I have to remind myself not to think of the grounds as they were last year, or in 1994 before we built the exhibit hangars, or even in the early 1980s when I was growing up just down the road from the AirVenture grounds. We must focus on what the grounds require to serve visitors in future years. It’s always easier remembering than predicting, because we know what happened in the past. We have to gauge the future using the best information we have right now.

All this leaves one final question: Do I take Louisville or North Carolina in the NCAA pool?

The Main (Gate) Attraction

At long last, we’re getting confirmation on where some of the remaining buildings will be located after we moved them from the area just north of AeroShell Square.

We’ve already discussed the Chapter and Young Eagles buildings (at the corner of Waukau and Knapp Street Road); International Visitors’ Tent (just north of the Control Tower); and the IAC Headquarters (A little bit south of it former location, just east of AeroShell Square).

One other building that is a very popular stop is the combination Lost & Found/Area Visitor Information pavilion. This year, that building will be just inside the relocated Main Gate. As long as we’re talking about the Main Gate, let’s go through what you’ll see when you arrive at the Main Gate in 2009 (with a little help from a handy line map):

When you arrive for your first day, you’ll choose from one of two directions. You’ll either go to your left to the Ticket Purchase/Admissions building (1), or the Assistance Center/Will Call window (2).

If you purchased AirVenture tickets in advance online, you’ll head to the right to the Admissions building (3), where you’ll get your wristband.

EAA’s computer ops building (4) is behind the advance ticket exchange building, but is not open to the public.

The Lost & Found/Area Visitor Information building is just inside the Main Gate, to your left (5). It’s the place where representatives from Oshkosh, Fox Cities (Appleton), Fond du Lac and Wisconsin visitor and tourism bureau have maps and information about the area and the state.

There are a couple of locations I want to mention as well. Just outside the main gate to the left (6) is the location to pickup and rent handicapped scooters, wheelchairs and other mobility needs. You can reserve those in advance and I’d recommend that plan if you need one, as demand is high.

The final areas, on either side just outside the gates (7) are bicycle parking areas. You can get right to the Main Gate. I’d encourage you to bring a lock for your bike.

I hope that creates a picture of what to expect when you get to Oshkosh this year. We’re finalizing maps right now and we’ll share more of specific locations in coming weeks.

Just for your info: Winter won’t leave us alone. Our crews spent Sunday night plowing (again). About seven inches of snow fell. This week we’ve already snow, sun, rain, wind and cold. In March, Wisconsin is truly a four-season paradise. Sometimes within a single week…