Published in Midwest Flyer Magazine October/November 2022 Digital Issue
OSHKOSH, WIS. – EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2022 is in the books, and it turned out to be a record-setting year.
“We introduced a tagline of ‘Unlike Anything Else’ for this year’s AirVenture event and 2022’s fly-in proved to truly be unlike anything else,” said EAA CEO and Chairman Jack Pelton. “We had seven days of nearly perfect weather, along with this year’s programs and activities, which brought out people and airplanes in numbers that we haven’t seen before.”
This year’s attendance was approximately 650,000 people, which was 7 percent more than 2021’s attendance, and exceeded the previous record of 642,000 set in 2019.
“There were several factors involved in the record attendance this year, in addition to the great weather,” said Pelton. “Programs such as the 75th anniversary of the U.S. Air Force contributed to exciting aerial displays all week, and it was a joy to welcome our international visitors back in full force for the first time since 2019.”
Here are some other details from this year’s fly-in:
Total Aircraft: More than 10,000 aircraft arrived at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh and other airports in east-central Wisconsin. At Wittman Regional Airport alone, there were 18,684 aircraft operations in the 11-day period from July 21-31, which is an average of approximately 121 takeoffs/landings per hour when the airport is open.
Total Showplanes: 3,226, including: 1,375 registered in vintage aircraft parking, plus 1,156 homebuilt aircraft (up 6 percent over 2021), 369 warbirds (up 5 percent from ’21), 137 ultralights, 87 seaplanes, 77 aerobatic aircraft, and 25 rotorcraft.
Camping: More than 12,000 sites in aircraft and drive-in camping accounted for an estimated 40,000 visitors.
Forums, Workshops, and Presentations: More than 1,400 sessions hosted throughout the week.
Social Media, Internet, and Mobile: More than 10.6 million people were reached by EAA’s social media channels during AirVenture, with engagement of 1.1 million; More than 83,000 hours of viewing EAA video clips online also occurred during the event.
International Guests: International visitors returned in a big way, with attendees from 92 countries outside the U.S., just one behind the record total from 2019.
The Gathering Shines: The EAA Aviation Foundation’s annual event to support its aviation education programs attracted more than 1,000 people and raised more than $2 million that will be focused on EAA’s mission of growing participation in aviation.
Media: 797 media representatives on-site, from six continents.
Economic Impact: $170 million for the five counties in the Oshkosh region (Winnebago, Outagamie, Fond du Lac, Calumet, and Brown). * – based on 2017 University of Wisconsin Oshkosh economic impact study.
Looking ahead to 2023, Pelton pointed out that the early planning conversations have already begun.
“Certainly the 70th anniversary year of EAA will be among the big considerations as we look forward to next year’s edition of The World’s Greatest Aviation Celebration,” said Pelton.
