A Look Back at The Aero-Equivalent of Burning Man, Woodstock and An Old Fashioned Tent Revival—All Rolled Into One Week in Wisconsin
Compiled by Jim Campbell, and The Staff, Stringers and Friends of the Aero-News Network
With Oshkosh all of a few weeks in the rear-view mirror, we come to a time when we TRY to evaluate what happened this year… in both positive and negative terms.
We’ve tried a few variants on this report in the past… and some of them have worked better than others, but we’re going to try to present a group of shorter segments, as we move through a few general categories (Heroes, Regrets, Coolest Players, Coolest Moments, Bozos, Planes, Gadgets, Fan Favorites, etc.…) so that we can try to make a proper report of the many high and low-points of AirVenture 2016…
If any of you have anything to add, please do so, we’ll be revisiting this topic via a half dozen or more categories over the next month and we’d love to have YOUR viewpoints added to the mix.
But for now… Here are our selections for Oshkosh 2016’s Coolest Players…. The folks, organizations, companies, ideas and program that raised the bar at AirVenture 2016…
AEA Giveaway: The Aircraft Electronics Association gave away $1000 every day for five days at EAA AirVenture for ADS-B upgrades. To help incentivize owners of general aviation aircraft to meet the Federal Aviation Administration's ADS-B Out mandate in the US, the Aircraft Electronics Association randomly awarded five aircraft owners with $1,000 toward an ADS-B compliant upgrade during the Experimental Aircraft Association's AirVenture Oshkosh week. This year marked the third consecutive year that the AEA has made the $1,000 award available to five aircraft owners. AEA has been more than an advocate.,.. they’ve passionately educated, cajoled and promoted the coming Next-Gen revelation in ways that the pilot population, as apathetic as it has often been, simply can not ignore. Good for them.
Alpha Systems AOA: The use of AOA guidance and technology should be a no-brainer to anyone in sport or GA… and yet, for some reason, it is easily the exception rather than the rule. For many, the concept of a simple, user-friendly, intuitive AOA system acceptable to the great majority of amateur aviators is the holy grail… and few have pursued that grail as avidly as has Mark Korin… who, when he’s not busy being the local Mayor, or running a busy company, has been devoting every spare moment to an AOA system that not only won approval for the MU-2 series, but is getting solid notice around the rest of the industry. The man is incredibly passionate about the benefits of AOA, and has trailblazed a path that could not have been an easy one, but continues to benefit sport, general and business aviation without respite. We’re glad he’s so dedicated… we need more advocates like him.
PS Engineering: Sometimes, you really need a specialist… and when it comes to audio systems for aircraft, there is no Sport and GA-oriented specialist more expert than PS Engineering when it comes to such. Fanatically dedicated to building audio panels and little else, virtually all the true innovations we’ve seen in this genre (at least those that actually worked) come from this little company under the command of the ever-dedicated Mark Scheuer. No one builds better audio panels, and rarely has anyone beat PS Engineering to a new innovation in this product category… making PS Engineering THE company to consider FIRST when you have need for the very best in aviation audio capabilities.
Dynon Avionics: They came out of nowhere… or so it seems… but good management, solid engineering, and incredible attention to what their customers REALLY want has made Dynon Avionics not only a force to be reckoned with, but another pseudo-dynastic aviation company in the making. You can match up the features and capabilities of an equivalent Dynon panel against virtually anything out there… even those panels built by far larger companies, and still come out ahead. Beautiful graphics, outstanding and intuitive menu protocols, and jam-packed with every feature we can think of, Dynon has become a powerhouse to be celebrated… and they have made the sport aviation avionics scene more competitive than it might otherwise be… and that’s a great thing for us all.
Trig Avionics: From across the pond, we have watched the UK’s Trig Avionics continue to build a product line-up that signals what could be one of the next quasi-dynastic aviation companies to come into being. Like a few others, Trig has built a solid line-up of products, with their distinction being the low-weight, small foot print, and significant cost-effectiveness these products have embraced. Aggressive with their R&D program, it’s an unusual event that doesn’t have a Trig announcement or two to add to the mix… and the feedback we’re getting from the customer base is quite positive. In an industry that has heretofore been dominated by a series of 600 pound gorillas, it’s nice to see solid, honest, little companies come to prominence through innovation, customer service and a keen eye to responding to what their customers want. Trig Avionics is a serious player in the avionics world… and will no doubt become even more so in the
years to come. And that, folks, is a good thing for us all.
L-3’s Lynx Series: Brilliant product development is something we see all too seldom in this business. In an industry where the concept of R&D often means ‘Rip-off and Duplicate’ the addition of seriously talented wonder-boxes, based on multi-function, multi-talented thinking is something we can all stand up and applaud. L-3’s Lynx series is one such product… actually a series of products, starting with the oh-so-affordable and working up to the oh-so-capable, the Lynx series is not only a great way to fly (and allows one to substitute out several boxes that heretofore were taken up by single purpose systems), with an easy to use interface, but presents an uncommon value going forward as well as we try to figure out what we’re going to do to deal with the ADS-B 2020 mandate. We loved flying this system and found the interface instinctive, visually compelling, and so easy to use that a TSA staffer could figure it out. We make a
prediction… a lot of those mandated installs are going to be filled by Lynx systems… Highly recommended.
MGL Avionics: Homebuilders are a persnickety lot… they not only want it THEIR way, they want it for minimal dollars and they want it now. MGL Avionics does that really well. With some of the best displays in the sport aviation biz, and with what’s been described as THE most customizable presentations ever (especially when you take in the feedback of a number of aerobatic performers who fly these things), The MGL series comes in a number of sizes, configurations and capabilities and no matter what you fly, it seems that they have a box that will fit your mission to a “T.” And best of all; the gear is incredibly cost-effective… making MGL Avionics products some of the best values in the sport aviation avionics arena.
Pedal Planes: There are number of folks out there offering kits or plans for various miniature pseudo-replicas of various airframes… in ‘pedal plane’ configuration. Wherever I see these fixtures on display, there always seems to be a line of cute kiddies ready to try out their best Walter Mitty impression as they saddle up in one of these miniature planes and dream great dreams of what may await them as they approach adulthood. I have no idea whether or not the availability of Pedal Planes has actually made a dent in the withering student pilot population… but I can’t imagine that it hurts one little bit… and ANYTHING that allows a child to dream... and dream BIG… especially when airplanes are involved, can’t be anything but good.
Pilot Training Systems: I’ve oft pondered the fact that teaching or promoting aviation safety is a VERY hard chore among today’s aviators… I can’t fathom why, but for quite a few years, I’ve found it to be a disappointing truth… so ANYONE who makes a dent in the aviation safety game is automatically worthy of our attention and our promotion… so long as the concept is a good one… and PTS’ Chris Johnson’s efforts in this regard are outstanding.
PTS has developed what is acknowledged to be one of the most advanced weather engines in the industry. ClimaDrive provides pilots with hyper-realistic dynamic weather simulation and is used by the NTSB in weather-related accident recreations/investigation. The program ups the ante in building realistic training scenarios, while proprietary data filters allow you to effortless select weather that fits your training mission. It’s a brilliant program…
Sporty’s Breakdown Assistance: Talk about a brilliant concept… Just about anyone who has been around aviation for more than a day or two has heard of Sporty’s Pilot Shop. The Christmas catalog from Sporty’s is always eagerly awaited and can bring tears to the eyes of all but the most true believers in self-deprivation. Now, Hal Shevers of Sporty’s Pilot Shop and Mike Busch, the President of Savvy Aircraft Maintenance And Management, have joined together to bring a product to market that is called their ‘Sporty's Breakdown Assistance Program.’ Pilots now have maintenance service and advice as close as their cell phone. While it has been compared with the AAA service for car repairs, it actually involves much more than that. When a problem occurs, the airplane owner has a single phone number and contact point to find out what needs to be done or, if the problem is even really an issue that makes the airplane unsafe.
When a phone call is made to the helpline, an impressive array of problem solvers may be participating in the solution process. They’ll work with a local maintenance person if one is available, and if conditions are serious enough that the airplane must be left, they’ll manage the repair process and even help provide transportation for the stranded pilot. It’s a subscription service at a price so reasonable almost any pilot could find it well worthwhile. This is something that we’ve been waiting for, and Sporty’s Pilot shop is bringing it to us.
Coming Up Shortly… Our selections (based on a LOT of YOUR input for Oshkosh 16’s Regrets, Coolest Players, Coolest Moments, Bozos, Planes, Gadgets, Fan Favorites, etc.…). If any of you have anything to add, please do so RIGHT AWAY, we’ll be revisiting this topic via a half dozen or more categories over the next month and we’d love to have YOUR viewpoints added to the mix.
SO... PLEASE drop us a note or two, ASAP, and add your thoughts to the list of the greatest and not-so-greatest moments, people, planes and products that made up AirVenture Oshkosh 2016!
ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (04.16.24)
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