Best Aircraft Parking Options

flyingpreacher

flyingpreacher

Pre-takeoff checklist
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flyingpreacher
PoA n00b here, so please forgive me if this is beating a dead horse. I tried to search the forums, but didn't come up with any threads directly paralleling my questions, so here goes. Planning to fly my C172 to Airventure in 2022 with another member from my flying club.

First, we are both IFR rated pilots. Should we come in IFR or is it more interesting to come in VFR (and if so, what is exciting about it?)

Second, what is the best parking option? We are looking at probably camping under the wings, but haven't ruled out hotel options. What gives the best view of the show(s) but also gives good access to everything?

I haven't been to the show in 15 years (16 by the time 2022 rolls around) and this will be my first time in as a pilot, so I'm incredibly excited! However, I don't want to make any foolish decisions, so I'm looking for any and all advice for making it a week to remember. (Side note, I don't drink, so the party info, while maybe valuable to others is a moot point for me personally. :))

Thanks in advance to the community!
 
Sadly I have never flown in in....but for both Airventure and Sun n Fun which is similar I have
driven in staying remotely
camped in a tent
and for sun n fun stayed in an RV several times...the motorhome variety of RV :(

Without question...stay on site and camp. It's just so nice being there when the crowds have left, walking around in the evening, enjoying the evening shows and presentations, etc....
 
RE: Flying in
You have to have a reservation to arrive IFR and they won’t let you use it if it’s VMC; you’d better be ready to fly the NOTAM.

Other issues depend on your and the airplane’s ages. If the airplane is 1970 or before, you can park or camp in Vintage, which is the best place on the field. If you are 1960 or before, it’s unlikely you’ll be happy in a tent for a week. Or maybe you’re already an avid camper, in which case I’m wrong.

Let me be the first to post a heresy. There’s no better housing than an RV in Camp Scholler. If I were coming from Pennsylvania, I’d get an RV from RVShare or some local RV dealer and have them set it up for me. I’d fly commercial into Milwaukee or Appleton and rent a car or Uber to the RV. If I were totally committed to flying myself, I’d go to Fond-du-Lac or Appleton.

I’ve flown in several times. The day I won a Bronze Lindy, someone taxied into my airplane and bent the trim tabs. No more flying in for me. I’ve camped in small tents, large tents, and multiple tents at the same site. But now I get an RV every year. It only costs a little more to go first class.
 
I would only do IFR if I 'had' to because of weather. I believe, as mentioned above, if it's VMC, they won't use IFR arrival routes anyway - they'll just dump you in with the regular VFR arrival patterns, so might as well plan on doing that from the get-go.

As far as 'full experience', I suggest camping under your wing in the North 40.
 
I flew in this year, it was a late decision, so I stayed in the dorms. Air conditioned room was not bad, I would say about 1 step below a cheap hotel, but clean. It was convenient to the show, a shuttle bus (full sized bus) ran from the dorm to the show and back. A week long pass was like $30. Something to consider if you are on a budget or can't find a room. Only down side, communal bathrooms, but even that wasn't bad. Except for the night some jackass decided to **** all over one of the toilet seats. But the next morning it was cleaned up by the custodial staff who came through at least once a day.
 
If your 172 was made in 1970 or earlier, we'll park it in Vintage which is where the action is.

The very first year I went to Oshkosh (1992), I stayed in the dorm. Every year since with the exception of one year in Scholler with our EAA chapter when the plane was down, I've camped with the plane. The first two years in a rented Skyhawk in the North 40, and the rest in Vintage with our Navion.

Hotels in Oshkosh are extremely pricey during the show. For example, the HGI runs something like $400/night with a seven-night minimum. Even the ones in town are quite jacked up during the show week. Couple that with the fact that they're probably already reserved for next year. The other option is to stay further away from the field (like Appleton) and commute in, but that's even a bigger drag than taking the bus down from the dorms.
 
Fly in. VFR. Don't bother with IFR. Have a good diversion idea in case the field is IFR, but just wait it out and then arrive at Oshkosh VFR. That's both for the experience of the Fisk arrival and to avoid the headache of the IFR reservation system. I'm sure it works fine, but it's just too much demand and not enough supply to be worth it. The weather will clear up soon enough.

Practice flying at 90 KIAS at pattern altitude for a few miles approaching your home airport and then making a variety of approaches and landings on specific points on the runway like the 1000-foot markers or the numbers. That includes approaches with a slight turn to final, base entry, and a tight downwind and base.

When you get there, camp with the plane. VAC (vintage aircraft camping) if you qualify is the best view of the show. GAC (general aviation camping) is also good, although depending on when you arrive you could be in the N40 or the distant S40. On-site transportation is generally good and, even if you skip the trams, the extra mile of walking won't kill you anyhow since you'll put on many miles just exploring everything.

Good work planning ahead.
 
So, since several of you have mentioned it, I'll have to wait a little longer to qualify for the vintage parking area as my bird is a '74. I will be at Wittman in 2 weeks and plan to do some scouting (both of the field and local info). We plan to fly out the Friday before the show and stay for about 7 days, and it sounds like camping is our go to. I'm 32 and my wife is...a handful of years younger than me (never reveal a lady's age!) We are both in good shape and don't mind walking 10+ miles in a day. My club buddy that will be flying out is older, but not old by any stretch.

I'll plan on flying IFR to Fond du Lac or Appleton and then VFR inbound. I'm going to work hard on my spot landings and try to perfect that. As far as the recommendation to rent an RV, I would LOVE to rent an RV. Preferrably an RV-10, but I could do an RV-12... Oh, you meant one of those boring groundy-rolly tiny houses. ;) We are set on flying in as 2 of the 3 of us have attended the show before, but really want this one to be special.

Any and all additional feedback is welcome! Like @iamtheari said, trying to plan ahead as much as possible. I don't wnat to wait until next June to put my ducks in a row...or find out if I even have ducks...or a row.
 
If you are coming in during visual conditions, you'll be strongly encouraged by the controller to cancel and go in Ripon. If the field really is IFR, then it's not that big of a deal. I've done it exactly once. Kind of eerie busting out at about 900 feet over the show like that.

My tri-motor ride a few years back was also the last one of the day. I was getting a bit curious seeing that we were only at about 700' and there were clouds forming below us.
 
As far as being at OSH outside of showtime, the field looks COMPLETELY different than during the show. It almost looks like a regular airport - go figure!? You can at least get a lay of the land and visual landmarks, though. Pull up the NOTAM from this year and find the landmarks as you're flying in - RR tracks at FISK, gravel pit on 27 downwind, etc. Then, as you're crossing the departure end of 18, imagine a flight of 4 P-51's crossing ahead of you to downwind while a flight of 3 Corsairs goes under you. Seriously.
 
Don't overthink it. Read the NOTAM, brief the NOTAM, follow the NOTAM. It will be a bit of an eye opener, since we're not used to seeing that many planes around us. But if you follow the NOTAM you should get in pretty easily free from drama.
 
CJones said:
Pull up the NOTAM from this year and find the landmarks as you're flying in - RR tracks at FISK, gravel pit on 27 downwind, etc. Then, as you're crossing the departure end of 18, imagine a flight of 4 P-51's crossing ahead of you to downwind while a flight of 3 Corsairs goes under you. Seriously.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately on this one, I'll be flying commercial into Appleton and driving down for the weekend, but I will still be studying the NOTAM on the way out and trying to get an idea of what I'll be looking at (obviously never the same as looking at it from above.

steingar said:
Don't overthink it. Read the NOTAM, brief the NOTAM, follow the NOTAM...f you follow the NOTAM you should get in pretty easily free from drama.
Click to expand...
You mean...they actually tell me how to be successful? It baffles me how often we as pilots try too hard when the information is so easily accessible to us (myself included, I'm not dogging on other pilots).
 
Friday midafternoon will get you a great spot in N40. I plan on doing that for as long as I can.
You see plenty of airplanes flying over N40.
See you there.
 
iamtheari said:
Fly in. VFR. Don't bother with IFR. Have a good diversion idea in case the field is IFR, but just wait it out and then arrive at Oshkosh VFR. That's both for the experience of the Fisk arrival and to avoid the headache of the IFR reservation system. I'm sure it works fine, but it's just too much demand and not enough supply to be worth it. The weather will clear up soon enough.

Practice flying at 90 KIAS at pattern altitude for a few miles approaching your home airport and then making a variety of approaches and landings on specific points on the runway like the 1000-foot markers or the numbers. That includes approaches with a slight turn to final, base entry, and a tight downwind and base.

When you get there, camp with the plane. VAC (vintage aircraft camping) if you qualify is the best view of the show. GAC (general aviation camping) is also good, although depending on when you arrive you could be in the N40 or the distant S40. On-site transportation is generally good and, even if you skip the trams, the extra mile of walking won't kill you anyhow since you'll put on many miles just exploring everything.

Good work planning ahead.
Click to expand...
We came in IFR this year on Thursday before the show afternoon. We flew IFR from W29 (Bay Bridge, MD) to Sporty's due to IMC over the mountains, then IFR from Sportys to KDPA (Dupage, IL) due to mist, rain and heavy smoke over Indiana. Then, given the continued iffy weather up to KOSH, my buddy tried using the on-line reservation system but it was down, so he called the number, easily got a slot a couple hours out. We finished up our show special lunch, preflighted and headed out. They wouldn't let us climb higher than the towering cumulus tops, so we bounced around a bit about 1000 feet below the tops. Then it went solid IMC, and we came in on the east side RNAV and broke out about halfway across the lake. There were planes coming in from the west on the RIPON approach. I'm not so sure they were far enough below the clouds for the regs, but they were making it in without any protests from the tower. Anyhow, we were cleared to land and it was all a non-event. If we hadn't flown IFR, we would have had a struggle getting in. As it was, it was a piece of cake.

Going out on Saturday morning after the show, we got a slot and good thing we did because the clouds and mist rolled in. We were into the clouds at about 1000 feet. Our friends had to leave a day later. Our only issue was that long, long routing on the west side of Madison before being allowed to turn east.

So given our schedule, the reservation system was not hard to use and IFR worked out nicely. VFR would have been shorter, more fun and better sight-seeing, but IFR got us where we wanted to be.
 
"There were planes coming in from the west on the RIPON approach. I'm not so sure they were far enough below the clouds for the regs, but they were making it in without any protests from the tower. Anyhow, we were cleared to land and it was all a non-event."

I last flew in in 2018, one of approximately 50,000 airplanes and motorgliders (we were one) (or so it seemed - ADS B. zoomed way in, still showed a solid black line of traffic)trying to make it in on Sunday afternoon the day before AirVenture Started (because weather was crappy for days before). After about 5-6 times flying the FISK arrival from Ripon and getting waived off to go around again (about 2.5 hours of flying the approach), with traffic bunched obscenely close together (certainly not 1/2 mile spacing.... leave that and 5 planes crowded in ahead of you.... at one point, I heard another aircraft's engine noise behind, and then over us, then turn off to side), we diverted to Appleton. Later that week, I was talking with one of the controllers at the NATCA (National Air Traffic Controllers Association) tent, telling my story of troubles trying to fly in. He told me he had flown in on Saturday. "Oh, IFR, eh?", was my reply. He said no, he'd flown the Fisk VFR Arrival approach. I asked how, because cloud bases were NOT 500 ft above the altitude you were supposed to fly the approach at anytime on Saturday. His reply? "They were if you squinted."
 
Keep the advice coming guys. I also joined the Williamsport Regional Association of Pilots (WRAP) and there are several that fly to Oshkosh every year, so they are helping me out too. As was discussed in Monday night's meeting, the best way to learn is by talking to other pilots. I can't get together in person will all of y'all, but the PoA forum lets us talk and learn from one another anyway!
 
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