By Robbie Culver
Any one of you reading these words could have written them. I know I am just lucky enough to be the one doing so. EAA AirVenture Oshkosh represents something different to each of us and profoundly impacts our lives far beyond the week we attend. Like many of you, my friends, I arrange my summer around Oshkosh. Work schedules are divided by before and after Oshkosh, and family members know to expect that I will disappear into an oasis of aviation for about ten days every July.
As I grow older, one thing I love seeing is the increasing number of young aviators in attendance. Without them, aviation cannot continue to grow and flourish, and it is our duty to pass on some of the wisdom and best practices that we received from those who went before. I hope they listen and pass it on again.
We meet old friends and new — a smile, a slight nod, a handshake and “Where are you from?” spark many ongoing friendships. We share the bond of flight and the ability to focus on aviation for a week to tune out the noise in the world around us. For one precious week in Wisconsin, we are all one big family.
This is why we come back. Come for the airplanes, for the people. A high five as we pass in the crowd. A hug in the AeroEducate Center. Some laughter and stories in Camp Scholler. Laughter in the UW Oshkosh dorms. And all the while making memories to bring home and take us through the rest of the long year without Oshkosh. But it’s always inside us. Always.
Our world can seem divided. Our nation may seem at odds. But not so much as we are told. Not here. I sit with people from many walks of life as I write this, and I treasure their companionship. The friendships I have made in aviation cannot be described, yet each year I try and hope those who read this smile and nod their heads in agreement.
Fixed-wing or rotary, certified or experimental, light-sport or warbird, ultralight or jet — all of it resonates inside us. And as we watch from the flight line or show grounds, we revel at the magic of the moment. Few places, if any, on Earth can give us experiences like this. And experience we do.
We fly in. We drive in. We ride in. But we are here, together.
What Oshkosh means to me is freedom. It means friendship. It means flight.
But most of all, it means my annual family reunion and seeing old friends while making new ones along the way.
See you on the flight line!