The final numbers are in for this year’s AirVenture, which attracted about 563,000 people, up about 1% from last year’s attendance figures.
“It was a magical week at Oshkosh this year,” said Experimental Aircraft Association Chairman Jack Pelton. “You could sense the enthusiasm throughout the grounds no matter wher you were. From the aviation anniversaries we celebrated, to the magnificent performances by the Canadian Forces Snowbirds, to the airplanes and aviators who were here, there was an energy that reinvigorated everyone involved in aviation. We premiered our annual Founders Innovation prize and celebrated the flight of our 2 millionth Young Eagle with thousands of EAA-member pilots who made that remarkable achievement possible. Our industry partners conducted more than 70 news conferences in Oshkosh, launching countless new products and technologies that benefit the aviation community.”
“Our attendance was particularly outstanding, since we had some weather challenges mid-week compared to seven perfect days in 2015,” he continued. “Our grounds crew and our volunteers, who number more than 5,000, did a superb job keeping the site ready for visitors and campers who arrived by ground or by air.”
More than 10,000 aircraft arrived at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh and other airports in east-central Wisconsin for the big show.
Total showplanes: 2,855 (up 7% 2015):
1,124 homebuilt aircraft (up 11%),
1,032 vintage airplanes (up 7%),
371 warbirds (up 6%), 135 ultralights and light-sport aircraft,
101 seaplanes,
31 rotorcraft,
41 aerobatic aircraft,
and 20 non-categorized aircraft.
The show had 891 commercial exhibitors, a 10% increase over EAA AirVenture 2015.
A total of 1,050 forums and workshops were hold during the week, attended by more than 75,000 people.
More than 35 million people were reached by EAA’s social media channels during AirVenture, according to association officials.
The EAA AirVenture app had 1.6 million screen views, while EAA video clips during the event were viewed 957,000 times and EAA’s 1,100 photo uploads were viewed more than 7.4 million times.
A record 2,369 visitors registered from a record-tying 80 nations. Actual international attendance by country is undoubtedly higher, since these are self-reported figures only, EAA officials noted.
Top countries represented:
Canada (578 visitors),
Australia (340), and
Argentina (167).
What’s ahead for 2017?
Planning for next year’s show, slated for July 24-30, 2017, has already begun, according to Pelton.
“There are people already coming forward with ideas that we’ll consider in the coming weeks,” he said. “Next year, for instance, is the 80th anniversary of the iconic Piper Cub airplane and the 70th anniversary of the U.S. Air Force. We also want to continue to be the place wher new aviation technology and innovations are unveiled to the world. Our evening lineups continue to provide attendees with additional reasons to stay throughout the night, and 2017 will be no different as we’ll kick off the week on Monday, July 24, with an evening concert by the Grammy-nominated alt-rock band Barenaked Ladies, presented by Ford Motor Company. Although the lineup of features, attractions and anniversaries is still developing, it will be a collection of aircraft and people unmatched anywher in the world.”
