Since I was unable to attend Airventure this year I figured they’d go ahead and tone it down a little. I mean, what’s the point of bringing tons of amazing planes if I’m not there to see them? Why bother bringing in any commercial planes that I haven’t seen…
Arizona Cardinals travel in style! Photo by Logan Lynch
OK – what the heck! I’ve never seen the Arizona Cardinals Football Teams’s private jet before. That seems a little unfair! Well thankfully that was the only one…
USA! USA! Photo by Logan Lynch
Wait… what??? Southwest brought it’s 250 Anniversary plane to the show?
Olympic livery! Photo by Logan Lynch
And Delta brought the LA Olympics airplane too? Clearly the commercial aviation was next level. That’s fine. No, really. I’m over it. Thankfully I’m sure there’s weren’t any military planes with next-level liveries…
Photo by Logan Lynch who clearly had too much fun.
Oh come on! How freaking cool is that?!?! Aw man. I can’t believe I missed that! Well at least no one got any amazing aerial shots or anything…
Another great pic by Logan Lynch
OK, so I wasn’t at Osh but thank goodness my intrepid photographer Logan was there. Judging by his amazing photos he captured the action in perfect clarity. And he’s making me so unbelievably jealous!
Logan hard at work. Photo by Jeff Jacobson.
Here’s a look at some of the other amazing Airventure 2026 moments – all photos below by Logan Lynch.
Thank goodness I got to see the Red Arrows perform back in 2019 – otherwise I’d be completely devastated right now. Needless to say I’ve already got Osh27 penciled onto my schedule. Hope to see you there!
*Author’s note: All my posts including this one were written by myself (and occasional guests) without using any artifical means. *
It’s that time of year again. Time for THE aviation event of the season… that I’m not attending. That’s right. Normally I’d be on the road somewhere near Chicago. This year I’m sitting at my dining room table, sulking. A few weeks back I broke my ankle. It is healing up well. But Osh is a lot of walking – 20,000 steps a day (or more). Sadly my ankle is just not up to it.
Fear not, however. My intrepid photographer Logan Lynch is boots (tennis shoes?) on the ground so I will still have plenty of photos and details to share. (Even though it’s going to kill me to see all the amazing aviation stuff that I’m missing.)
Old Crow! Do you think it will miss me as much as I miss it?
I’ve been thinking back over my many years at Osh and it occurs to me that there’s one aspect of Airventure that I haven’t written about much… the parties!As you know, Osh is more than a fly-in, convention and air show. It’s an aviation family reunion. There are gatherings and events happening all over the grounds all the time. Some are small gatherings of friends and aquaintances and others are major corporate shindigs that require an invitation. Here’s a look at some of the parties I’ve attended over the years.
Ye Olde Flying Mag Party Venue
Flying Magazine
This event ended when the magazine was sold a few years back. But at one time they hosted a pretty fancy gathering at a marina overlooking the lake. I just happened to score an invite from a friend one year. (OK, he was mostly using me for my car, but whatever.) People discarded their grungy Osh-wear and donned nicer duds. The catering was pretty good. Lots of media folk in attendance. Being merely a humble blogger I remember feeling a bit like a fish out of water. Still the setting was lovely and it was nice to mingle away from the dust and noise of the Airventure grounds.
Pipstrel Podapalooza
This gathering, which was held on the grounds at the Pipistrel booth, also no longer happens. It was organized by the lovely Launchpad Marzari who passed away in a flying accident a few years ago. If you had a podcast or if you listened to them, you were welcome. There was pizza and prizes and it was a nice time spent gathering with like-minded avgeeks.
Best glass ever!
Hartzell Props and Hops
This is my favorite Osh party, hands-down. It requires an invite so I make sure I RSVP every year. The catered food is really good. There’s live music. The atmosphere is casual and fun. Everyone who attends gets a signature glass which you can then fill with beer or cider or water or whatever. Oh – and the desserts are delicious. And yeah, people duck out of the tents when cool planes fly in. Because it’s what aviation people do!
Piper
This one is also invitation only. Some years I attend. Some years I don’t. The food is always good. They typically have seafood included in the buffet (shrimp cocktail and the like) which is pretty tasty. They also have music – usually a live band. It’s a nice event but I sometimes feel a little overwhelmed so I like to check out the aiplanes around their booth, then tuck myself in a quiet spot to enjoy the atmosphere.
Boeing plaza as seen through a Boeing window on a Boeing airplane.
Boeing
This is a big shindig held at the large Boeing booth just off Boeing plaza. You definitely need an invite for this one as they have people at all the entrances, checking the guest list and turning everyone else away. (To be fair, their booth is right at show center so there are a lot of people passing through who don’t even realize an event is going on.) Somehow I ended up there last year. Don’t ask me – I don’t know. I was with a group and next thing I knew we were in. This is the only party I’ve attended that was indoors with air conditioning. Very nice! Lots of people, lots of food and a chance to take a look at all of the displays in the Boeing booth.
But Wait… There’s More!
There are a few other events that I’m aware of but have never attended. EAA hosts a fundraiser dinner at their aviation museum called The Gathering. It is semi-formal and includes a silent auction. If you want to attend you can buy tickets – $250+ per person. Cirrus has a big party on the Sunday night before Osh begins. Strictly invite-only. Doubt I’ll ever get on the list. The UCAP podcast usually hosts their “Tiedown Party” in the North 40 every year. Despite my best intentions, I never make it over there, but I believe it is open to anyone.
You may be wondering how to get invites to some of these events. There’s no magic formula – I just happen to know people who know people. The best advice I can offer is to make your own party. Gather with friends and family. Enjoy time with each other and with airplanes. That is really what Osh is all about. No RSVP necessary!
Stay tuned for more Osh26 goodness. You can follow Logan’s adventures on Instagram: @lynchdronephotography and on Facebook: @Lynch Drone Photography LLC. I’ll be sharing some of his pics on my socials also – Instagram: @Talesfromtheterminal and Blue Sky: @jen-niffer.
Props and Hops glasses 2018-2025. Except there was no 2020. And 2021 is suspiciously missing.
**Author’s note: All my posts including this one were written by myself (and occasional guests) without using any artifical means. **
We got some very sad news a few months ago with the closure of Spirit Airlines. I suppose it is no surprise. The airline was already on life support having declared bankruptcy twice in less than two years. Still, it breaks my heart for everyone affected, including that little boy who loved the yellow planes so much that his dad would bring him to the airport parking garage just to see them.
The demise of Spirit got me to thinking about some other airlines that have shut down over the years. As an airport employee there were some I was sad to see go. And there were others I was relieved not to have to deal with.
Miami Air out in the open.
Long-time blog readers will recall my early obsession with Miami Air. For whatever reason they insisted on sneaking in and out at odd hours and they refused to park where I could get a good look at them. The more they played hard to get, the more determined I became to catch them. This went on for months. It might have gone on for years. Thank goodness I did finally get a good look before they shut down.
Then there was the little airline whose name I can’t remember that offered direct flights between my airport and Milwaukee via private jets. Normally bizjets operate out of the FBO so seeing those little planes enplaning and deplaning passengers next to the terminal was an unusual sight. The avgeek in me quite enjoyed them.
Miami Air trying to hide as per usual.
However, the accountant in me most definitely did not. They agreed to pay ramp and ticket counter fees, among other things. During their brief tenure at the airport (less than a year) they paid exactly… nothing. Not one penny. I billed them every month. Reached out for payment. Was politely persistent. Nothing. I found out later that the only invoices they ever paid were for employee parking. One day they just went out of business and we never heard from them again. There was a rumor that the airport confiscated their computers and ground equipment and sold it to recoup some of the fees.
And then there is Elite Airways. While I’m never happy when people lose their jobs, these guys infuriated me to the point that I wasn’t sorry to see them go. They didn’t operate regular flights to my airport but instead handled various charters. They were never great about paying their bills and eventually stopped paying altogether. Someone in airport operations was able to track down the local sports team who was chartering them and explained what was happening. Suddenly the bills got paid. Briefly. Eventually they stopped paying again and completely ghosted everyone.
Miss the airplane, not the airline
It was just by chance that I discovered they had stopped operating. I came across some news stories about other airports that also hadn’t been paid – and these airports had regular flights with gate use and ticket counters. Elite had a maintenance base at one of them and I read that the airport seized everything – hangars, equipment, even parts of airplanes – and auctioned it off. Every last scrap. Elite owed them a lot of money and I know they didn’t get it all back. Made me feel a little less bitter about the few thousand owed to us.
Circling back to Spirit… I don’t know how things were between them and the airport these last couple years. Probably not so great. But when I was dealing with them (2018 – 2024) they were a fine airline to work with. Paid their bills. Communicated regularly. I’m saddened by their demise. The ramp will certainly be more dull without those bright yellow bananas taxiing around. Best wishes to the Spirit team for soft landings and bright futures.
**Author’s note: All my posts including this one were written by myself (and occasional guests) without using any artifical means. **
Tales from the Terminal 