Aviation Films Through the Ages

Conceived of as an informal flying club on 26 January 1953 by veteran aviator Paul Poberezny and a group of three-dozen Milwaukee-area aviation enthusiasts, the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) has since grown to some 270,000 members organized into 900 local chapters—each committed to sharing the spirit of aviation.

Comes now 2023, and the 70th anniversary of both the Experimental Aircraft Association’s founding and its annual AirVenture fly-in and airshow—the largest event of its kind in the wide world

On 08 June, the EAA announced the compendium of films to be presented at the much-loved Fly-In Theater during AirVenture 2023 will be led off by a showing of a biographical film highlighting the life and achievements of Medal of Honor recipients Tom Hudner and Jesse Brown. Subject film’s overwhelmingly positive reception at last year’s AirVenture compelled event organizers to host an encore screening thereof.

Over the last 15-years, the Fly-In Theater has attained the stature of tradition among AirVenture attendees. Located adjacent EAA’s Camp Scholler campground, the venue affords event-goers opportunity to relax after a long day of air shows, exhibits, and workshops. The nightly films are shown on a five-story-high movie screen and introduced by a diverse group of luminaries ranging from aviation legends to Hollywood superstars.

The Fly-In Theater is presented by Lycoming and supported by Southwest Airlines.

Fly-In Theater films—attendance of which is included in AirVenture daily and weekly admission—will be shown nightly from Saturday, 22 July through Saturday, 29 July (weather permitting). Showtimes begin at 20:30 CDT.

AirVenture 2023’s Fly-In Theater film schedule includes:

• Saturday, 22 July: Top Gun (1986). The all-time favorite film about naval aviation starring Tom Cruise, Anthony Edwards, and Val Kilmer.
• Sunday, 23 July: Top Gun: Maverick (2022). Tom Cruise, Jennifer Connelly, and Miles Teller update the story of Captain Pete Mitchell as a legendary test pilot called back to train a new group of young, self-aggrandizing Naval Aviators.
• Monday, 24 July: Tail Spin (1939). Alice Faye, Constance Bennett, and Nancy Kelly star in this drama based on three female pilots competing in the Cleveland Air Races.
• Tuesday, 25 July: The Great Waldo Pepper (1975). A World War I veteran pilot takes up barnstorming and teams up with a fellow war veteran to perform stunts. Starring Robert Redford and Bo Svenson.
• Wednesday, 26 July: Amelia (2009). Hilary Swank stars in this biographical film about the life of Amelia Earhart from the beginnings of her interest in aviation to her disappearance in 1937.
• Thursday, 27 July: Flight of the Intruder (1991). Danny Glover, Willem Dafoe, and Brad Johnson star in a Vietnam War thriller about a pilot and navigator who execute an unauthorized strike on Hanoi.
• Friday, 28 July: Devotion (2022). Glen Powell and Jonathan Majors star in a retelling of the bond between  Tom Hudner and Jesse Brown during the Korean War.
• Saturday, 29 July: Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines (1965). A comedy about a British newspaper publisher who organizes an air race from London to Paris to promote British aviation. Starring Stuart Whitman, Sarah Miles, and Terry-Thomas.

Additional information pertaining to EAA AirVenture 2023—including advance ticket and camping availability, prices, and purchase—is available at: www.eaa.org/airventure .

FMI: www.eaa.org