Oshkosh, WI: Last week, more than 685,000 people from 98 countries traveled to Oshkosh, Wisconsin, to experience the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2024.
More than ten thousand arrived by air, piloting small homebuilt aircraft, ultralights, vintage planes, helicopters, and state of the art military aircraft. Nearly 50,000 arrived in small and large RVs – camping for the entire week of stunning day and night airshows, fantastic fireworks, magnificent displays by aircraft builders, special exhibits by aviation enthusiasts, and the unique KidVenture venue.
KidVenture was fabulous, offering hands-on STEM-oriented activities for children. Experts provided demonstrations showing how some aircraft components function and instructions on how to build them. An impressive booth honoring the Tuskegee Airmen was among the special exhibits, with Tuskegee Airman Retired Col. James Harvey, III signing autographs.
Among the aviation enthusiasts were Gigi Coleman (great niece of Bessie Coleman and heading the Bessie Coleman Aviation All-stars youth program), Theresa Claiborne (first African American female to fly for the U.S. Air Force and recently retired United Airlines Captain, flying the Boeing 787 on international flights), and Caroline “Blaze” Jensen (retired Lt. Col. from U.S. Air Force and former member of the internationally renowned U.S. Air Force Air Demonstration Squadron, the Thunderbirds).
Meeting up with all three at the KidVenture venue was very special. Having just received autographed hats and books from Harvey, the Sulton kids were treated to detailed discussions with Claiborne and Jensen about their current and forthcoming children’s books. They discussed potential future story lines of particular interest to young children and teenagers.
Completing our AirVenture 2024 experience was the Embry-Riddle dinner. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is considered the most prestigious university in the world specializing in preparing industry leaders in aviation and aerospace. It attracted more than 1,000 people for its Wednesday night dinner gathering of faculty, staff, students and alum.
For more information about EAA and its next Airventure in July 2025, please visit eaa.org.
