AVIATION
AVIATION NEWS
EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2026 is Coming!
Originally appeared July 1, 2026
The EAA AirVenture Oshkosh is a major event for all people interested in flying. From its modest beginning in 1953, it has grown to become one of the world's premier aviation events, attracting top government officials, corporate leaders, over 10,000 aircraft, and hundreds of thousands of aviation enthusiasts. This year’s event will take place from July 18 through July 24.
History (compiled from the event website)
The Experimental Aircraft Association's Fly-In Convention, now known as EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, has been in existence nearly as long as the association itself.
The first gathering was in September 1953 as a small part of the Milwaukee (Wis.) Air Pageant. That original EAA fly-in at Curtiss-Wright (now Timmerman) Field was attended by a handful of airplanes, mostly homebuilt and modified aircraft. Fewer than 150 people registered as visitors. The larger Milwaukee Air Pageant has faded away but the EAA gathering has become the world's premier aviation event.
EAA's fly-in grew quickly in its first few years and by the late 1950s it had outgrown the area of the Milwaukee airport it was allowed to use. In 1959, the event moved to Rockford (Ill.) Municipal Airport, where it would stay for the next decade.
By 1969, it was apparent that the EAA Fly-In Convention had simply become too large for the Rockford facility.
EAA had grown from a home basement operation to an office and museum in the Milwaukee suburb of Franklin. The annual convention mirrored that growth, attracting hundreds of show planes and tens of thousands of visitors.
Sites were studied for a new home. Aviation legend Steve Wittman, who had been an EAA member since the association's founding in 1953, suggested the airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
Oshkosh featured acreage surrounding the airport to handle the annual influx of airplanes, vehicles and tents. There were two lengthy runways (east/west and north/south) which did not cross, allowing greater traffic movement. Oshkosh city officials eagerly sought the event and enjoy the economic boost it provided. In late 1969, the EAA board approved the move to Oshkosh.
There was only one problem: no convention site or infrastructure existed in Oshkosh. EAA's volunteer network was up to the task, however. Within six months, EAA members had created a home for the fly-in. That volunteer spirit continues today, as more than 4,000 people donate their time and talents to help prepare and coordinate the convention's grounds and activities.
Through the 1970s and '80s, the convention exploded into national prominence. Attendance jumped into six figures each year and the event became one of sport aviation's top gatherings.
Programming
This year’s AirVenture is replete with the usual comradery, with many meetings and activities, KidVenture, GirlVenture, WomenVenture, exhibits, workshops, club meetings, and much more. See here for more information: https://www.eaa.org/airventure.
Schedule
Air Shows
A number of air shows will occur each day, including performances by the U.S. Army Golden Knights Parachute Team, the Red Bull Air Force, the International Aerobatics Club, and Britain’s Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team (aka the famed Red Arrows), and many more. For a full schedule, see: https://www.eaa.org/airventure/features-and-attractions/eaa-airventure-air-show#.
Theater in the Woods
Sunday, July 19 — An Evening With Champions: The History of the USAF Heritage Flight (7-9 PM). Kick off the week with some of aviation’s best as they talk about what it took to create the USAF Heritage Flight, and how they keep it going.
Monday, July 20 — U.S. Air Force’s Salute to America’s 250th Birthday (7:30-9:15 PM). The United States Air Force will lead a program featuring a swearing in ceremony at 7:30 p.m., followed by country music star Tyler Hubbard taking the stage at 8 PM.
Tuesday, July 21 — A Home in Space: From the Shuttle and Beyond (7-9 PM). Celebrate 45 years of the space shuttle with a panel of NASA astronauts and personnel including Hoot Gibson, Charlie Precourt, Eileen Collins, and Jeanie Engle, moderated by the National Air and Space Museum’s Jennifer Levasseur, curator of the space shuttle and ISS exhibits.
Wednesday, July 22 — Concept to Cockpit (6:30-7:45 PM). WomenVenture day will be capped off with a panel of women who have made an impact in aircraft design featuring Xyla Foxlin, Jessica Cox, Margaret Viola, and Kacy Anderson.
Thursday, July 23 — Memphis Belle: Telling the Story on the Big Screen (7-9 PM). Hear from cast and crew members of the 1990 film as they recount what it was like to tell the story on the big screen.
Friday, July 24 — 9/11: A Look Back 25 Years Later (7-9 PM). Honoring those who risked their lives at a time of tragedy, hear from a collection of brave individuals as they reflect on their firsthand experiences. Featuring members of the FDNY, NYPD, Air Force One, and NASA. Also, meet the RAF Red Arrows Team.
Saturday, July 25 – Mission Marge:The Discovery of the Ace of Ace’s Lightning, (6:30-7:45 PM). Members of Richard Bong’s family, Richard I. Bong Veterans Historical Center, Pacific Wrecks, and the 128th Air Refueling Wing share the story of the mission to recover artifacts from America’s leading ace during WW II.
Fly-In Theater
Aviation and film fans alike will enjoy the lineup of movies that are being screened during EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2026 at the Fly-In Theater, presented by PenFed. This year the Fly-In Theater is featuring six aviation-centered movies from July 18-24 spanning from classic to contemporary films that the whole family can enjoy.
Saturday, July 18 – Top Gun – Celebrate the 40th anniversary of this aviation classic on the big screen, featuring Tom Cruise, Anthony Edwards, and Val Kilmer in this epic tale about grit, competition, friendship, and most importantly, 1980s naval aviation! The one and only Lt. Cmdr. Lloyd “Bozo” Abel, the pilot who gave Tom Cruise his F-14 orientation, will join us as a special guest.
Sunday, July 19 – Flying Misfits – In this feature length pilot episode for the classic television series Baa Baa Black Sheep, U.S. Marine pilot Greg “Pappy” Boyington forms his own fighter squadron from a group of misfits and delinquents to help the effort in WWII, long after his time flying with the Flying Tigers in China. Stephen Chapis, author of a new book about the series, will be joining as a special guest.
Monday, July 20 – “A Tribute to Jimmy Stewart” – The evening will begin with some very special guests offering an exclusive look behind the scenes at the upcoming film Jimmy, a biopic celebrating the life and accomplishments of Jimmy Stewart, a beloved actor and decorated military aviator. This will be followed by a screening of the 1955 classic Strategic Air Command, where Stewart plays an ex-pilot turned baseball player forced to return to the Air Force and aid his country in Cold War deterrence.
Tuesday, July 21 –The Rescue – This documentary film chronicles B-25 owner and pilot Larry Kelly’s trip to China to explore the sites where the brave pilots of 1942’s Doolittle Raid were forced to crash land and take shelter after their one-way mission to strike Japan in retaliation for the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Thursday, July 23 – Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning – Ethan Hunt returns to combat his toughest enemy yet, a terrifying AI known simply as “the Entity” that has taken over intelligence networks across the globe, and only Hunt and his new allies with the IMF are able to try and stop it before it changes the world as we know it forever. Air show pilot Susan Dacy will join us to talk about high-performance Stearman flying.
Friday, July 24 – Memphis Belle – Inspired by the true story of the Memphis Belle, a B-17 crew will soon be embarking on their 25th and final mission, having completed the previous 24 against the odds. Their last one is the toughest they’ve been given yet, flying deep into German territory. Special guests include producer Catherine Wyler, along with key cast and crew members.
AVIATION
AVIATION NEWS
Aviation Week Podcast: Airbus and Boeing CEO’s See the Future Differently
Evolutionary versus disruptive changes in technology, demand for new aircraft versus fleet optimization, advances in propulsion technology, and other issues make for an interesting discussion/comparison. See for yourself at: https://aviationweek.com/podcasts/check-6/podcast-why-airbus-boeings-ceos-see-future-differently.
Aviation Week Article: FedEx Urges Government Help to Grow SAF Supply
Jet Fuel will continue to be in short supply, and at higher cost. One possible help is the use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). FedEx already uses SAF now at five major airports (ORD, MIA, LAX, DFW, and JFK), starting a year ago. Millions of gallons of SAF are involved, with a large saving in petroleum products. For more information on this encouraging development, see: https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/aircraft-propulsion/fedex-urges-government-help-grow-saf-supply.
Jet Fuel Shortages Loom
“Airline industry officials are warning of potential disruptions to flight schedules this summer as jet fuel supply concerns and rising costs continue to develop amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said shortages could first affect parts of Asia before spreading to other regions, while European carriers are also assessing the financial impact of sustained higher fuel prices.
“European carriers are also assessing the financial impact of higher fuel prices, as several airlines reduce capacity or adjust schedules in response to rising operating costs.”
See here for the full story.
For additional info from Europe, see: https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/airports-networks/high-fuel-costs-disrupt-winter-2026-network-plans.
And if fuel woes weren’t enough, climate change will certainly affect the commercial airline business; see: https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/airports-networks/aviation-industry-warned-climate-pressures-will-reshape-travel.
AVIATION FYI
Results of UPS Crash in November 2025: “Boeing’s flawed analysis of a 2002 in-service incident masked the significance of nine subsequent occurrences before a 10th led to the fatal crash of UPS Airlines Flight 2976 in November 2025, details released during an NTSB hearing as part of the safety agency’s probe reveal. The troubling chain of events raises concerns about foundational industry processes meant to improve in-service fleet safety through hazard identification and risk analysis.
Testimony and documents made public during the 1.5-day hearing held May 19-20 in Washington show the accident was caused by fatigue cracking that originated in a lubrication channel inside a part within the MD-11’s No. 1 (left) engine pylon. The channel runs along the inside circumference of a collar, or race, that forms part of a steel spherical bearing. The bearing rests within two lug holes, or bores, and houses a bolt that attaches the lugs to a wing clevis, providing one of the two engine attachment points on each wing.
“Boeing understood from previous incidents that the race was susceptible to cracking. Several incidents also demonstrated that race damage could affect load distribution across the lugs, causing cracks or deformation.
“But Boeing’s analysis concluded that if one lug failed, the second would hold, keeping the engine and pylon attached to the wing. As Flight 2976 proved, Boeing was wrong.
“The MD-11’s left engine and pylon tore away from its wing right after rotation, when tension on the cracked lug was highest. Fatigue cracks in the lug bores gave way and both lugs fractured. The engine—its pylon still attached—pivoted forward and up, broke away from the wing, and passed over the MD-11’s rear fuselage.
“The stricken widebody lifted off but could not maintain altitude. It went down 4,200 ft. from the end of Louisville International Airport’s Runway 17 Right, in an industrial area. Its maximum recorded radio altitude during the 22-sec. flight was 29 ft. All three UPS pilots onboard and 12 people on the ground were killed.
AVIATION WEEK PODCASTS OF NOTE: Follow Up: Last month, the Aviation Week website had several items relating to the present events in the Iran Crisis, including: “What’s Under the Ever-More Expensive Golden Dome,” “A Stress Test for Aging Aircraft,” and “The Impact of the Iran War on Airlines.” I will focus here on two other items: the podcast entitled “High-Energy Laser Weapons Reach New Heights “and an article entitled, “Debrief: China’s New Laser Focus to Take Down Satellite Networks.”
Recently, Aviation Week posted a follow-up regarding the Golden Dome, questioning the feasibility of using Space-based interceptors.
A summary of the issues raised in the March articles follows:
Lasers: Laser weapons/defenses have long been under study, especially so since the High Energy Laser Scaling Initiative began in 2018. Recent advances, now being deployed in the Iran Crisis, are providing operational tactical testing. Present capabilities are useful against balloons and small drones, but research into scaling-up laser technology will soon allow targeting of faster targets, such as cruise and ballistic missiles. A 300kW laser system is presently in operation, and a 500kW system is under development by Lockheed Martin and should be ready soon. Meanwhile, a 1MW laser system is in the works. All of these systems are intended for defense against arial attacks. The AW podcast also stresses China’s interest in laser technology for aerial defense, and notes that powerful laser systems may also find use in the mitigation of orbital debris.
Anti-satellite: Of course, if ground-based or space-based laser systems can shoot down debris, they can shoot down other satellites. Space debris is already a major problem, and could be used by a weaker adversary to disable an opponent’s space-based assets via a “denial of service” attack where a number of dirty bombs are exploded in LEO to cause a Kessler Syndrome. A nation with considerable LEO military assets of their own would not do that, but high-powered space-based laser system(s) could make a more surgical attack possible. Quoting from the Debrief piece in AW:
“Over the past decade, U.S. military space planners and commercial space companies have largely reached consensus on the “resiliency” of building networks comprised of numerous small satellites, rather than a handful of high-value satellites.
“If a potential adversary must now target hundreds of relatively inexpensive platforms with a high-cost anti-satellite weapon launched from the ground or an aircraft, that attack now becomes more inefficient and costly, the argument goes. That thesis has driven government and commercial operators around the globe to invest in new networks in low Earth orbit (LEO) for mission areas including data connectivity, missile warning and tracking, geospatial intelligence and alternate positioning, navigation and timing.
“Now, China is looking to use directed energy to target multiple satellites simultaneously. In February, the South China Morning Post reported that scientists at the Northwest Institute of Nuclear Technology in Xian, Shaanxi province, have developed a high-power microwave weapon called the TPG1000Cs—a compact device capable of delivering 20 gigawatts of power for one full minute from the back of a truck or while mounted on an aircraft.
“Such a device could send pulses out to space to hit multiple systems at once, causing glitches or loss of control, U.S. military leaders have said. Suddenly, the cost curve to target space assets looks more feasible.”
AVIATION LINKS AND OTHER INFORMATION
Let’s Recover a WWII TBD-1 Torpedo Bomber! The TBD-1 Devastator was the U.S. Navy’s first all-metal, low-wing, carrier-based torpedo bomber. The Devastator went into service in 1937, but it was completely outdated by the time of Pearl Harbor. In spite of its flaws, it was used during the opening months of the Pacific campaign, including operations in the Marshall Islands and major carrier battles in 1942. It had to fly low, slow, and straight to launch its torpedo. Only 129 were ever built. The Devastators they were soon replaced by a more capable aircraft, the TBM Avenger, the aircraft flown by George H.W. Bush later in the War. But not before the ill-fated Torpedo Squadron 8 was annihilated at Midway in June, 1942.
American naval forces were reeling after Pearl Harbor, but the aircraft carriers weren’t in port that day, and were able to conduct raids on Japanese holdings in the mid-Pacific. On February 1, 1942, the carriers Yorktown and Enterprise struck targets in the Marshall Islands. Seventeen SBD Dauntless dive bombers and 12 Devastators (carrying bombs instead of torpedoes since they were after targets on land) from the Yorktown went to Jaluit Atoll. Their attack was thwarted by bad weather, and two of the Devastators became disoriented in the clouds to the point they lacked the fuel necessary for a return to their ship. They elected to ditch in the large Jaluit lagoon. All six crewmen from the two aircraft were captured, and would survive the War and, but only after some very rough treatment there and back in Japan.
The two Jaluit Devastators are still there and one of them is the focus of a new recovery effort, the Devastator Project, made by a “coalition of maritime archaeology, aviation preservation and naval history organizations.” The aircraft selected for recovery was Bureau Number 1515, piloted by “Ensign Herbert R. Hein, Jr., (with) navigator/bombardier Aviation Ordnanceman, Third Class (AOM3c) Joseph D. Strahl, and radioman/gunner Seaman First Class (S1c) Marshal E. “Windy” Windham.” The other, Bureau Number 0298, was manned by “pilot Lt. Harlan T. “Dub” Johnson, navigator Aviation Chief Machinist’s Mate (ACMM) Charles E. Fosha, and radioman/gunner Radioman First Class (RM1c) James W. Dalzell.”
[ASIDE: It’s a good thing the two crews eventually made it back home OK. My boss at my first job in Colorado Springs, a fine gentleman and decent golfer, was the son of Charles E. Fosha.]
The wrecks of several other Devastators are known, but none to date have been recovered and restored enough to be put on display anywhere, making this dud of an airplane a rare and important artifact! I wish the Devastator Project team the best of luck in their endeavor!
For more info, see: https://avweb.com/aviation-news/tbd-1-recovery-effort-world-war-ii-navy and https://vintageaviationnews.com/warbirds-news/us-navy-announces-mission-to-recover-a-douglas-tbd-devastator.html.
Air Traffic Management: The one-year anniversary of the worst U.S. commercial air accident in the last 25 years was on January 29. American Flight 5342, on final approach into Washington National Airport (DCA), collided with a Blackhawk helicopter conducting a night training exercise. All 64 people on the Bombardier CRJ700 aircraft and the three on the Blackhawk were killed. News at the time, plus the recently-aired special on the Discovery Channel, “DC Air Disaster: Final Minutes Revealed,” indicate that there were a number of factors involved, as is the usual case with commercial aircraft crashes. Visibility was good that night, but it was dark, and the DCA air space is notoriously crowded.
Near-collisions are common at DCA, and the layout of the helicopter route passes directly below the approach for Runway 33. The separation protocols in the region are also insufficient, according to the NTSB report released recently. The helicopter was flying at almost 300’, 100’ higher than the maximum altitude for the route, and it is likely that the pilot undergoing training was wearing night vision goggles, which would have restricted their vision. The helo was an older model Blackhawk, with dial controls its dashboard instead of easier-to-read versions in later models. Only one flight controller was on duty in the control tower that night; they did not do anything wrong but the tower radar and other equipment is notoriously antiquated. The Air Traffic Management equipment nationwide is also in tough shape. Much of it dates from the 1950s and 60s, and some in the DCA tower could not be turned off, because it was feared that once off, the equipment would fail to re-start.
The present head of the FAA is Bryan Bedford, the former CEO of Republic Airways, spoke at the Changi Aviation Summit meeting in Singapore on February 2. “One of Bedford’s first and top priorities on joining FAA is helping lead an initiative launched by U.S. Transportation Department Secretary Sean Duffy earlier last year to modernize and reset the national ATM system. It is a massive undertaking involving replacing antiquated and analogue equipment with digital and high-tech tools and creating a system that can manage petabytes of data and make the whole system more safe, sequential and efficient.”
Patrol Route 4, which allowed military helicopters to pass only 100’ below commercial airliners on descent to Runway 33, is now closed. The FAA faces a huge task in renovating the system with modern equipment, which would have prevented the accident. Hopefully, no further deaths will occur because of equipment not up to the increasingly-crowded airspaces around the country.
Find out more about Bedford’s remarks here: https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/safety-ops-regulation/faas-bedford-atm-modernization-must-do.
The Senate Commerce Committee is planning to hold a hearing on February 12 with NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy to review the NTSB findings on the crash, including the ROTOR Act, passed by the Senate, that would mandate the use of the latest equipment more broadly (both aircraft in the January 2025 crash were so equipped, but the Blackhawk’s was not turned on). For more on the planned hearing, see: https://avweb.com/flight-safety/accidents-ntsb/senate-committee-to-hold-dca-hearing-ntsb.
The XB-70 Valkyrie Revisited: The Valkyrie supersonic aircraft was amazing piece of engineering. Its story, and tragic ending has been touched upon in two past Items of the Week, covering its development and first flight test (here) and the crash of one of the two ever built (here). Alas, it proved to be a technological dead-end. I’ve recently come across some additional information that may be of interest to you. It’s from the archives of the Air Force Material Command, a research facility at Wright-Patterson AFB, a piece called, “A Look Back… NAA B-70 Valkyrie Variants: A Future That Never Was,” edited by Tony R. Landis, a writer/archivist at the HQ AFMC History Office. See it here: https://media.defense.gov/2020/Nov/23/2002540204/-1/-1/1/B-70%20VARIANTS.PDF. Planners were thinking about using the Valkyrie as a reusable high-speed high-altitude launch vehicle for all sorts of lifting bodies, rockets, even manned orbital craft like the Dyna-Soar and the Manned Orbiting Laboratory (the subject of a future Item of the Week)!
Related Article: Podcast: Hypersonic Hopes – The Legacy of the X-30 “Orient Express” President Reagan’s 1986 State of the Union Address contained his vision for a Mach 25 (not a typo) airliner, the X-30 National Aero-Space Plane (NASP). Just as the Valkyrie was hoped/hyped as supersonic launch platform for direct LEO spacecraft, so, too, was the X-30. “DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, really talked them into this idea of this Copper Canyon project. This was a way of sort of delivering this hypersonic single stage to orbit type capability to the Air Force. They wouldn't have to worry about rockets and the shuttle. They could do it their own way. And so this Copper Canyon project really was the sort of the genesis of what became, dressed up as a civil project in some ways, the Orient Express.”
Let’s just say that the Oriental Express concept was a tad optimistic, but this was a very interesting discussion, especially since it comes on the 20th anniversary last month of the Mach 9.6 flight of NASA’s X-43. For the full Check 6 podcast, see: https://aviationweek.com/podcasts/check-6/check-6-revisits-hypersonic-hopes-legacy-x-30-orient-express.
What’s It Like to Fly to Telluride? Telluride, Colorado, located in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado, is a spectacular setting, home to celebrities famous, skiers, and festival goers. There are more private jets flying into its small airport, at over 9000’, than just about anywhere. AVWeb just posted a video of what landing there is like, in a propeller-driven plane. See: https://www.avweb.com/multimedia/featured-video-flying-into-telluride-a-stunning-high-stakes-approach.
And if you think that’s wild, try jeeping into Telluride over the (in)famous Black Bear Pass (if you are not too late; it recently was closed due to damage by a rockfall). For example, see: https://www.cntraveler.com/video/watch/the-road-less-traveled-traversing-black-bear-pass.
Oh, and watch out for falling cars!
Other Information Sources:
Aviation Week: https://aviationweek.com
Commercial Aviation Info, Photos, and News: https://www.airliners.net/aviation-news
AVweb: https://www.avweb.com
General Aviation News: https://generalaviationnews.com
NASA Aeronautic Research: https://www.nasa.gov/aeroresearch/resources
NASA Next Gen STEM: Aeronaut-X: https://www.nasa.gov/stem/nextgenstem/aeronaut-x/index.html
NASA Aeronautics at Home: https://www.nasa.gov/aero-at-home
Aeronautics E-books: https://www.nasa.gov/connect/ebooks/aeronautics_ebooks_archive_1.html