Tom Poberezny Talks On The Eve Of Aviation's Greatest Week

By ANN Correspondent Rob Milford

EAA President Tom Poberezny rushes around the field on a sunny Monday afternoon, his “Red 3” Volkswagen a familiar sight as the very last minute preparations are finished for “AirVenture 2003.”

Poberezny took some time to chat with Aero-News on the state of general aviation, and some of the highlights of the show.

With 4,500+ aircraft on the field… he says for airplane lovers “This is THE candy store! It’s a delight to watch people here for the first time.” He adds “We continue to be the world standard for aviation events.”

The Centennial of Flight and the Wright brothers: “They were not two lucky bicycle builders…they are the essence of what the EAA is all about, innovators, and builders.” The great-grand niece and great-grand nephew will be at AirVenture. “Momentum for the centennial celebration continues to
pick up, culminating at Kitty Hawk on December 17th.” A traveling exhibit on the Wright Brothers, sponsored by Ford, has already been to Dayton, Detroit, New York, and Lakeland, Florida.

Charles Lindbergh: “The Missouri Historical Society has loaned us hundreds of pieces from the Lindbergh estate. They have developed a traveling exhibit, and this is one of the first public displays.  Eric Lindbergh is here to help us celebrate his grandfather’s life.”

Poberezny says that the 170,000 members of the EAA are a continuing source of pride, how they continue to improve the craftsmanship of new construction and renovation, coming up with new methods

Chuck Yeager, Neil Armstrong are here...”you can see these guys just walking down the flight line,  shoulder to shoulder with people who and just aviation enthusiasts.”

Poberezny cites Yeager’s leadership in the Young Eagles program for the last nine years… and how the number of flights flown is fast closing in on One Million. “When Chuck took over the program, 42 thousand youngster had flown, now, it’s 944,000! Chuck has invested his time and reputation and his passion for aviation in the young people, who will be the next leaders, flyers and innovators.”

On the strange, exotic and “Oh Wow” aircraft on the ramp: “The Airbus Beluga, Hughes H-1 Racer, and NASA aircraft lead the pack.” This is the first public display of the huge Beluga in North America… a jet-powered follow-up to the KC-97 “Guppy” and “Super Guppy” aircraft from the 1960’s. “Some of the Oh Wow” Poberezny says “Is just seeing the huge variety of aircraft, from the warbirds to the homebuilts, to the classic planes from the 30’s and 40’s.”

When it comes to how General Aviation is dealing with the TSA: “It’s a real learning curve…everyone in the aviation community is learning to work together and strike an appropriate balance.”  And about the new rash of rules and regulations ? “We need to work through these issues, and get back to where we were before… and I’m optimistic as we celebrate the 100th
anniversary of flight.”

FMI: www.airventure.org