For those of us who were caught in that epic mess trying to fly into OSH 2018 on the Sunday before the show, let's hope the FAA has briefed their controllers on the FISK arrival procedure for 2019.
For those who are unaware, 2018 was the worst arrival mess we've ever seen. (This year will be my 37th consecutive Oshkosh -- I know what I'm talking about.) The weather had been bad for a few days, and everyone was on the ground, waiting for that VFR window to launch.
When it came, we all launched at once.
The guys at FISK, when presented with too many planes coming up the railroad tracks too close together, panicked.
Instead of taking every third or fourth plane, like they had done every other year, they ordered EVERYONE back into the hold.
So, we would all go back around the lake, as a mob, until released. We would then head back up the railroad tracks -- now with even more planes -- and the controllers would freak out AGAIN and send the whole group back to the hold.
This happened several times.
That's not how you resolve the issue. Every other year, they would let one or two planes through, then send the next three or four back to the hold. That's how you break up a gaggle of planes that are too bunched up.
It just got worse and worse, until -- after 3 hours of holding -- we (and 100 of our closest friends) diverted. It was a mess.
Let's hope this year they follow their own procedures, and everything is back to normal.
We are counting the days!
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