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 Heroes 2016...

Hartzell’s Joe Brown: To so many people, Joe Brown is 'Mr. Prop' -- the guy who calls the shots at Hartzell -- an innovative and overly competitive player of the propeller art. But Joe Brown is also one of those guys who can’t just do JUST one job… As he’s found a way to get himself involved in all manner of things aviation, and take on a number of leadership roles… Even when not required to do so. Joe Brown is an overtly passionate pilot… The kind we see too few of, but who otherwise enrich aviation in no uncertain terms every time one more steps up. Joe is an ardent advocate of aviation innovation, of pilot proficiency, of NOT burying our head in the sand, and of raising the bar for the aviation world whenever possible. Incredibly thoughtful, I’ve gotten such a kick out of the too few conversations we’ve had with him… And come away with a little bit more enthusiasm every time we do. We need a thousand Joe Brown’s, but for now the one that we have is having one hell of an effect on the aviation world. And yes, for that reason alone, Joe is a true aviation hero.

WAI’s Peggy Chabrian: Peggy Chabrian is one of the truly unique personalities that has popped up in the aero–verse. We’ve watched her over a number of decades, as Peggy has taken one of the smallest demographic groups in aviation and made them a power to be reckoned with. More important, Women in Aviation International, her organization, is also a powerful force now within the aviation world. While there’s no question that the percentage of women in this industry is embarrassingly small in terms of gross numbers, for aviation to have its greatest appeal outside of our normal borders, we have to make sure that the rest of the world looks upon aviation as an industry and a pastime that is inclusive, rather than exclusive. The ‘old white guys look’ that typifies so much of aviation is one of our worst handicaps. Watching Peggy empower hundreds, even thousands, of women to invest their lives and dreams in aviation is one of the most awesome pursuits imaginable (and a lot of fun to observe). If we could, somehow, bottle-up the energy and vitality that Peggy has inspired in the aviation movement, and transmit that, even transfuse it, to the rest of the real world, our problems would be over in an instant. And yes, that makes Peggy Chabrian an aviation heroine, without question.

ANN’s Nathan Cremisino: While the Aero-News crew is made up of some exceptionally talented and passionate individuals, we have one fellow in particular, that’s been with us for nearly a decade and has put his all into making Aero-News everything that it can be. No where and at no time during the year are his contributions more noticeable, or more important, than they are during Oshkosh. Nathan leads our Airborne and Aero-Video teams, takes on a number of other chores that are outside of the norm, and for some reason or another, the more we dump on him, the greater he succeeds. And while I hate to single one person out from a crew that has distinguished itself so many ways, I don’t think there’s anybody among ANN that doesn’t notice that he never fails. Nathan has just become a father for the first time and trucking him out to Oshkosh this year tested him more than at any other time, but he did it without complaint, and when you consider that he also oversaw the massive production of this year’s AirVenture Innovation Preview 2016, in addition to all his many works, you can’t be anything but impressed. Yeah, Nathan is one of those guys gives so much to aviation and one whom we all should consider a true hero of aviation.

Agile Aero’s Jeff Greason: Once the guiding force behind XCOR Aerospace and now moving on to even more aggressive and intriguing business pursuits, Jeff Greason is a truly unique individual who wants to take us to the stars with tremendous passion—and has the expertise to pull it off. I’ve worked with this guy off and on for over a decade, and while I find his style intriguing, impressive, and at times just plain amusing, I also notice a fierce determination in everything he does. While there are innovators out there getting tremendous attention from their successes in the commercial space sweepstakes… Elon Musk, and Jeff Bezos, among others; I have a strong suspicion that at some point in the future, a guy by the name of Jeff Greason will be just as noticeable. It’s one thing to dream great dreams of launching into space… It’s another to possess the kind of mindset that can deal with the specifics, detail by detail, as to how to make such complex things happen… And Jeff is one of those guys. To everyone who loves aviation and aerospace, that means that Jeff should be listed as an aviation hero.

Redbird’s Jerry Gregoire: I’ve been watching (and learning from) Jerry Gregoire for the longest time. This is a guy whocolors outside the lines at every opportunity and makes aviation a much more interesting community to be part of. He’s not content to watch things go as they might, he’s not willing to play by the old rules, but he IS fiercely determined to motivate the aero-verse in directions that benefit us all. Whether re-making the flight simulator business, or retooling one of Cessna’s most significant flight trainers, or any one of a number of things… Including some truly, if not insanely, inspired ideas like selling one-dollar avgas to study the resultant impact on the aero-ecosystem, Jerry Gregoire is one of those guys you don’t dare ignore and should keep a sharp eye on. He has surrounded himself with highly inventive, aggressively imaginative people who have been given some inspired directions and the freedom to see them through. I’ve seen great things come out of Redbird’s many generations -- But I have a strong feeling that the best is yet to come.… And that, folks IS Aviation Heroism 101.

Senator James Inhofe: No one has to tell you that the coming political season is likely to be one of the most contentious (if not, bizarre) in US history… And for those of us in aviation who fear either candidate's eventual victory, all we can do is hope for the best. Frankly; one way or another, about half of us are likely to be disappointed with the results to come, (maybe more), and we’ll ALL have to live with that. But in the meantime, aviation has its most powerful advocates where it needs them the most, no matter whether you lean liberal or conservative, Republican or Democrat… Men like Sen. Jim Inhofe are so clearly on our side, and so clearly doing great work, that we can all be truly grateful that guys like this still exist. While Jim Inhofe has a number of partners in the House and Senate that are devoted to seeing aviation move forward, he's also had to fight tooth and nail against those who do not understand the value of aviation and aerospace in this country -- and to the world. There are those who would rather keep aviation under tightly controlled and overly regulated control – to the point where the aviation world is, today, struggling for survival. But we remain alive… And one of the greatest reasons for that is because of men like the Senator (and others like him), and their collective commitment to fairness, their obligation to the well-being of aviation and aviators everywhere, their innate expertise in the aviation world, and their ability to educate their fellow legislators about how strongly the aviation world needs their support. I'm tremendously impressed by Inhofe, and have been for many decades, and have absolutely no reservation about naming him an unmitigated aviation hero.

One Aviation’s Alan Klapmeier: I've known Alan Klapmeier more than half my life… And in that time I have been amazed at his perseverance as he sees through the vision he has for a more innovative and productive aviation world. Like many of us who have fought long and hard for what they believe in, the aviation world hasn't necessarily been very kind to him… But that hasn't kept Alan from being an aggressive advocate, a visionary dreamer, and insightful businessman. Don't get me wrong, Alan has stumbled, and he's picked himself up… He's also been held back and treated poorly by those who should revere and respect his talents and his vision… Most especially the company he created, Cirrus Aircraft – which is so intent on rewriting history to negate and minimize Alan and his accomplishments, that it sickens me to the core. But that hasn't stopped him… Nor has some of the dirty tricks that we've seen Cirrus pull. But what we have seen is a guy who has a number of ideas for better planes and better companies – all to better the aviation world… And an incredible unwillingness to quit. You can't help but respect a guy with that much perseverance, as well as that much drive -- and even when you do a critical examination of his track record, you have to admit the importance of all that he's accomplished, and respect his drive to accomplish even more… One wonders where he gets the energy to keep stepping forward on behalf of us all. I've watched him for decades, I've agreed with him with a lot, and disagreed with him some, but I've never questioned the fact that everything he did transcends his own interests and makes him one of the most consistently important aviation heroes I know.

Maria Morrison: Several years ago, we were introduced to a young lady who had just started high school… She came from an aviation family, her father, in fact, flew the EAA B-17, and had a significant resume in the aviation world. Maria wanted to write for ANN, to offer a youthful perspective on all things Oshkosh and she sold us on this idea right away… Her enthusiasm was infectious, and we put her to work with confidence. This “kid” turned in great copy, needed very little editing, and offered plenty of enthusiasm for everything we tasked her to do. Over the years. Maria has become a consistent contributor on a number of levels and even for events beyond Oshkosh. But this year, at the tender age of 16, she did not travel the usual road to Oshkosh – and instead flew herself solo (with her family following in other aircraft) in a Piper Cub. Signed off for a long solo cross-country… And I mean LONG cross-country… Maria not only piloted her Cub all the way from the state of Washington to Oshkosh, she did so with tremendous enthusiasm. In chatting with her about the flight, we noted her maturity about the challenges she undertook, the complex judgments she had to make along the way, and her ability to take on the inevitable problems and get them fixed safely and swiftly. Her incredible adventure not only did much for her… but it enthused all of us at ANN about what can be done in this day and age by someone so youthful… though sheer force of will and determination… and how aviation could REALLY use a lot more young folks like Maria. While she worked for us this Oshkosh, she turned in her usual great stories, and even though we deliberately gave her tasks that were designed to challenge her a bit more than the norm, she not only succeeded, she impressed us -- again. There’s a bit of something heroic in all this… but to all of us at ANN, Maria embodies a hopeful future for what aviation can mean to so many. And, that’s heroic, in and of itself.

EAA Boss Jack Pelton: I've been working with Jack Pelton, on and off, for a number of years. Jack obviously has a number of talents that have allowed him to assume leadership roles in a number of venues across the general and business aviation community, but I don't think any of the roles he's dared take on in the past have been as well suited for him as his assumption of the leadership role for EAA. Despite some issues and controversies from leaders past, and the way it was run over the course of many years, Jack arrived and took over a somewhat wounded organization and brought it back to life in a low-key, competent sort of way. And what he's accomplished at EAA, has been quite remarkable… Not the least of which is the fact that he's restored much of the membership's faith in an organization that, frankly, had disenfranchised itself from much of the sport aviation world. While I’m not going to tell you that all is bright and shiny with the EAA, every day, I will tell you that I don't recall a time in the recent past when the organization has enjoyed the support that it has at the moment… Especially when a few other major organizations and innovators have truly disconnected themselves from the wishes of their membership and supporters. I like the way the Jack listens… I like the way that he responds… I love the fact that he is willing to listen to unconventional thinking… And I am particularly fond of the fact that he understands that everything we have to do right now has to be done in terms of the "NEW Big Picture" in order to build a future that can survive a world that has not been very kind to aviation, and is likely not to be much kinder in the future. EAA is healthier, sport aviation is somewhat healthier, AirVenture is growing, and general aviation is a bit healthier in many ways because of Pelton's work… All due to the fact that this is a guy who is smart enough to surround himself with very talented people and let them do their jobs without too much ‘supervision’ – one of the truly inspired leadership essentials I've observed from the most effective leaders in aviation (and elsewhere). Most important; I've worked with Jack in a couple of areas where I've just simply had to trust him as we were discussing issues that were sensitive to ANN and sensitive to EAA. He had to trust me. I've had to trust him. And I have to tell you that the result thus far has not only been productive, but instructive. And, yeah, that easily qualifies him as an aviation hero.

Pilot Proficiency Center: I love the Pilot Proficiency Center. And not just for what it does, but for what it means to an industry that has, for so long, had a "kick the tires and light the fires" mentality that has scared, harmed, or killed far too many of us. The Pilot Proficiency Center is an organized attempt to bring in a heretofore unparalleled standard of professionalism to what has been primarily an amateur pursuit. For some reason, selling the concept of safety in both the sport and general aviation arena is one of the most difficult tasks I and many others have ever undertaken. I've never understood that… it betrays the concern we should have for our own lives, the responsibility we have for the lives of our friends and their families that fly with us, and a somewhat more substantial responsibility for how bad the aviation world looks whenever one of us screws up. The Pilot Proficiency Center doesn't try to force-feed you aviation professionalism, it makes tremendous resources, substantial expertise, and all manner of learning technologies available to the pilot, in small chunks, that are easy to digest and imbues every participant with the knowledge that they can do better, should do better, and HOW they CAN do better. Everyone who staffed the Pilot Proficiency Center… Those who conceived of it, those who staffed it, those who sponsored it, and those who promoted it, they are aviation heroes – and all you had to do was look at how well represented all aspects of aviation were in the PPC to know that this was an idea whose time is come.

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!

FMI: Hey ANN... Here Are MY Thoughts on The Best and Worst Moments of AirVenture Oshkosh 2016!