EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, or just Oshkosh, is an annual air show and gathering of aviation enthusiasts held each summer at the Wittman Regional Airport and adjacent Pioneer Airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, United States. The southern part of the show grounds, as well as "Camp Scholler", are located in the town of Nekimi and a base for seaplanes is located on Lake Winnebago in the town of Black Wolf.
The Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) is an international organization of aviation enthusiasts based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Since its inception, it has grown internationally with over 300,000 members and nearly 1,000 chapters worldwide. It hosts the largest aviation gathering of its kind in the world, EAA AirVenture Oshkosh.
Elbert Leander "Burt" Rutan is a retired American aerospace engineer and entrepreneur noted for his originality in designing light, strong, unusual-looking, and energy-efficient air and space craft. He designed the record-breaking Voyager, which in 1986 was the first plane to fly around the world without stopping or refueling. He also designed the Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer, which in 2006 set the world record for the fastest and longest nonstop non-refueled circumnavigation flight in history. In 2004, Rutan's sub-orbital spaceplane design SpaceShipOne became the first privately funded spacecraft to enter the realm of space, winning the Ansari X-Prize that year for achieving the feat twice within a two-week period.
Robert Anderson Hoover was an American fighter pilot, test pilot, flight instructor, and record-setting air show aviator.
Homebuilt aircraft, also known as amateur-built aircraft or kit planes, are constructed by persons for whom this is not a professional activity. These aircraft may be constructed from "scratch", from plans, or from assembly kits.
Paul Howard Poberezny was an American aviator, entrepreneur, and aircraft designer. He founded the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) in 1953, and spent the greater part of his life promoting homebuilt aircraft.
The Cirrus Design Corporation, doing business as Cirrus Aircraft, is an aircraft design, manufacturing, maintenance and management company, as well as a provider of flight training services, that was founded in 1984 by Alan and Dale Klapmeier to produce the VK-30 homebuilt aircraft. The company is headquartered in Duluth, Minnesota, United States, with operational locations in six other states across the US including North Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Arizona, Florida and Michigan, and additional sales locations in France and the Netherlands. It is majority-owned by a subsidiary of the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC).
The National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF) is a museum, annual awards ceremony and learning and research center that was founded in 1962 as an Ohio non-profit corporation in Dayton, Ohio, United States, known as the "Birthplace of Aviation" with its connection to the Wright brothers. In 2017, the annual induction was held in Fort Worth, Texas, as the organization began rotating the ceremony among various cities.
The EAA Aviation Museum, formerly the EAA AirVenture Museum, is a museum dedicated to the preservation and display of historic and experimental aircraft as well as antiques, classics, and warbirds. The museum is located in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, United States, adjacent to Wittman Regional Airport, home of the museum's sponsoring organization, the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), and the organization's EAA AirVenture Oshkosh event that takes place in late July/early August.
Jack J. Pelton is an American aviation businessman who currently serves as the Chairman of the Board of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) since 2012 and CEO of EAA since 2015. He also served as CEO of the Cessna Aircraft Company from 2004 to 2011, a subsidiary of Textron Inc and now a brand of Textron Aviation. Before becoming Cessna's CEO, Pelton was its Senior Vice President of Product Engineering since 2000 and prior to that, was Senior Vice President of Engineering and Programs at Fairchild Dornier. Previous to Fairchild, he worked at McDonnell Douglas for over two decades.
Thomas Paul Poberezny was an American aerobatic world champion aviator, as well as chairman of the annual Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) Fly-In and Convention from 1977 to 2011 and president of EAA from 1989 to 2010, presiding over a time period of expansive growth for the organization and convention. He succeeded his father, Paul Poberezny, who founded them in 1953.
Aviation in Wisconsin refers to the aviation industry of the American Midwestern state of Wisconsin.
Richard E. "Dick" VanGrunsven is an American aircraft designer and kit plane manufacturer. The number of VanGrunsven-designed homebuilt aircraft produced each year in North America exceeds the production of all commercial general aviation companies combined.
The Klapmeier brothers, Alan Lee Klapmeier and Dale Edward Klapmeier, are retired American aircraft designers and aviation entrepreneurs who together founded the Cirrus Design Corporation in 1984. Under the leadership of the Klapmeiers, Cirrus was the first aircraft manufacturer to install a whole-plane parachute recovery system as a standard on all its models—designed to lower the airplane safely to the ground in case of an emergency. The device is attributed with saving over 200 lives to date. From the brothers' use of all-composite airframe construction and glass panel cockpits on production aircraft, Cirrus is known for having revolutionized general aviation for modern light aircraft pilots.
Fatih Ozmen is a Turkish-American aerospace engineer, entrepreneur, former cyclist, the co-owner and CEO of Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC).
Eren Ozmen is a billionaire Turkish-American businesswoman, and the majority co-owner and president of the private aerospace and defense company, Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC).
John Gregory Roncz was an American aerodynamicist involved in the development of over 50 different aircraft, ranging from ultralights, round-the world record breakers and military transports, to yachts and a racing car. He was described by Burt Rutan, the prolific aircraft creator, as "the genius of airfoil design"
The International Air & Space Hall of Fame is an honor roll of people, groups, organizations, or things that have contributed significantly to the advancement of aerospace flight and technology, sponsored by the San Diego Air & Space Museum. Since its founding in 1963, over 200 individuals have been inducted into the hall, with new additions inaugurated at an annual gala.
Ravn Aerospace, formerly known as AirUSA, is an American defense contractor based at Houston Spaceport in Houston, Texas. It offers adversary air, close air support, Joint Terminal Attack Controller, and Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance training to the United States Department of Defense.
Mack Rutherford is a British-Belgian aviator. On 24 August 2022, under the name Macksolo, he became the youngest person ever to fly solo around the world and the first minor to achieve this feat. He holds four Guinness World Records, including the record for the youngest person to fly solo around the world, previously held by Travis Ludlow, and the record for the youngest person to fly a microlight solo around the world, previously held by his older sister Zara Rutherford. His successful record attempt received significant global exposure, highlighting his mission to demonstrate that young people can make a difference.