Greeting Visitors to AirVenture And Oshkosh Along I-41

When Paul Barber retired, after several decades of having enjoyed flying his Velocity, he donated the homebuilt to the EAA Aviation Foundation, where it will be included in the new homebuilt display along I-41 near the entrance to the EAA AirVenture grounds next to Wittman Regional Airport (KOSH) in Wisconsin.

Barber built the airplane over a four-year period more than twenty years ago.

Barber said, “I’m retired now and spend half my time in Arizona and half in Nebraska. I’m involved in a lot of activities that I like to do. So it was just time.”

The airplane came into Paul’s life when he and his son were at AirVenture about 30 years ago. He was looking at a different plane when his son said, “Dad, you gotta see this.”

Paul describes what happened next: “He pulls me over and it was one of the first years [Velocity] was at Oshkosh. So anyway, later I was down for a meeting in Florida and had an afternoon off, so I called [Duane] Swing saying I’d like to look at the aircraft he’s putting together. He asked if I wanted to take a test flight and I was like, ‘Oh, sure, whatever.’”

The test flight included an impromptu and immediate barrel roll when Barber asked about aerobatics. He ordered the kit about six months later, beginning a build that lasted four years and included a move from Iowa to Nebraska.

When asked what he thought about his airplane being the highlight of the EAA homebuilt display and having it admired as people arrived, he said, “It’s the best thing ever.”

FMI:  inspire.eaa.org/