This week would have been EAA AirVenture 2020. The annual fly-in brings hundreds of thousands to Whittman Airport in Oshkosh to share their experimental aircrafts, see historic and new airplanes, watch aerial shows, and learn more about aviation.
On May 1, the convention was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Members have had to adjust.
For Jason Bukvich of Brookfield, his experiences with EAA go back to the early ’70s when he and his family would travel to the event. “I got to see one day of the air show on the weekend, and they thought it would be a fun thing to do.”
It was part of a love for aviation that would continue through Bukvich’s life, from growing up during the ’60s space age, to using air travel for work, to joining EAA as a member after his retirement in the early 2010s. “Now I have the time in the summer to be up there. I really keep in touch with everything related to aviation and space because it’s just been an interest to me my whole life.”
Bukvich says the majority of EAA members agree with the decision to cancel this year’s AirVenture due to travel restrictions and the possible changes it would had force them to make to the event due to COVID-19.
The cancellation does prevent people from all walks of life who are like Bukvich and have an interest in flight. He describes the people who come to Oshkosh cover a wide range; from kids to teens who want to learn more about aviation, to people who build and fly their own aircrafts, to those who come to see the planes in the air and on the ground.
“They are just all interested in seeing, learning and sharing experiences,” says Bukvich.
How have members compensated without AirVenture? Bukvich says they have kept in touch through social media, and they have taken advantage of EAA’s “Spirit of Aviation” Week this week. The organization has made an all virtual event that showcases the entire spectrum of flight through their speaker series, workshops and showcases of member aircrafts.
“I think it was very smart of EAA to put this together,” says Bukvich, “and to use the same week that the real events were scheduled for. They have three channels, almost like TV channels, streaming that they have been operating five days this week…from Noon until about 8 p.m. with just content that they put together from the past or recently recorded.”
As Spirit of Aviation Week events wraps up Saturday, Bukvich says he is hopeful that AirVenture is able to return in 2021 in all its splendor. “The face-to-face contact and being there, the smells, the sounds, the visual experiences and actually meeting the people in face or virtually…there’s just really no comparison to it. I think everybody can’t hardly wait to get together again.”