The Salcone family of Folsom, California, enjoyed a few memorable days at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2026 thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Arriving Wednesday and staying through the Saturday night air show, Luca Salcone, his dad Chris, and the rest of the family had the chance to take part in a number of unique opportunities during their time in Oshkosh.
Luca was invited to climb in the cockpit of various warbirds, including a B-25, P-47, Corsair, and EAA’s B-17 Aluminum Overcast.
“It was the nose tour of the B-25 and I got to crawl around the B-17. And I got to, since it was sitting on the ground, the Corsair, he let me climb in it and press some buttons,” Luca said. “And then the flaps moved, the ailerons moved, and the rudder moved a little bit. And I also got to use the gun trigger.”
Added Chris: “We learned a lot of little inside details about the planes. We also talked to Bernie Vasquez with the P-47. So both him and Jim [Tobul] from the Corsair gave us a walk around the plane, looking at specific things, a lot of details that most people don’t know about the planes. So that was very personalized and extra special.”
Additionally, Luca, EAA 1728487, and his family received a tour of the FAA control tower, where they had the chance to talk to Thunderbird No. 8, Sam “RaZZ” Larson. Luca also had the chance to take a Bell 47 flight, try his hand on a couple different flight simulators, and meet The Flying Bulls.
“Make-A-Wish went all out,” Chris said. “I mean, they paid for everything, gave us money to spend for food and souvenirs. I mean, we didn’t spend a dime of our own money and just enjoyed the heck out of it. Stress-free, so we can take our minds off of things and enjoy each other.”
Luca has participated in the Young Eagles program through a few different chapters in Northern California and Chris said they’ll continue to stay involved in aviation going forward.
“We’ll stay active, following along with EAA offerings,” Chris said. “We’re probably going to take advantage of the ground school that Young Eagles get to participate in, getting some more education and keeping our doors open for something later in life in the aviation industry.”
With it being his first time attending AirVenture, it’s safe to say Luca enjoyed his experience.
“I want to come back,” he said. “I’ll have to stay there the whole week [next time].”