Cessna’s join mass
arrival tradition
By James Wynbrandt
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An arriving C-172
in the first Cessnas to Oshkosh group flight. Photo by Dave
Higdon.
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Bonanzas do it. Mooneys
do it. And now Cessnas do it, too. Celebrating the 50th anniversary of
the C-172, 50 Cessnas staged their first group arrival at EAA AirVenture
2006 on Saturday, landing in between the annual Bonanzas To Oshkosh and
the Mooney Caravan arrivals.
"Coming in with a
group is lot harder to organize but a lot easier to fly," said
event coordinator Fred Johnson, of Tampa, Florida, standing beside his
C-206. Johnson was inspired to organize the group flight after his first
visit to AirVenture last year. "The 50th Anniversary gave us a lot
of momentum," he said.
Staging out of the
Juneau, Wisconsin, airport, some 35 nautical miles south of Wittman
Field, and flying at 2,000 feet, the Cessna contingent included C-172s,
C-182s, C-206s, C-210s, a C-337, and a pair of C-310s. To assure safety,
all participants took formation flight training.
"I’m very pleased
with how it came off," said Training Director Rodney Swanson, who
arrived in his C-310. "It’s a relief all the hard work and long
hours finally paid off."
Groups including the
American Bonanza Society and Warbird Society provided information on
their training regimens to help.
As for the future,
"Everyone wants to do it again next year," said Johnson.
Cessna pilots interested in participating can consult the group’s Web
site, www.c2o.us.
Preceding the Cessnas, 82
Bonanzas arrived from their Rockford, Illinois, staging airport in the
17th annual Bonanzas to Oshkosh (B2O) flight.
"It’s just as
exciting as the first time," said Wayne Collins, who originated
B2Osh.
"From my point of
view this has been my easiest year," said Elliot Schiffman, the
lead organizer, who arrived in his F33A Bonanza. "Everybody knows
what they’re doing and it’s made my job very easy."
All participants attend
formation flight clinics during the preceding year, and many of the
B2Osh pilots have become quite proficient at close-quarters flying. At
today’s showcase fly-by, 14 Bonanzas will present a formation flight
display.
Bonanza pilots who want
to find out about next year’s event can view the www.b2osh.org
Web site.
As the Cessna pilots were
putting up their tents in the North 40, 42 Mooneys arrived in the 9th
annual Mooney Caravan. The aircraft, from a 1962 B model to a 2006
Ovation 3 from the Mooney Aerospace, came from both coasts and as far
away as British Columbia, according to the Caravan’s director of
registration, Johnathon Paul.
"What a perfect way
to arrive," said Mike Elliot of Indianapolis, making his first
visit to AirVenture with his fiancé Marquette Browning.
The Mooneys staged at
Madison’s Dane Country Regional Airport. Flight Leader Bill Rabek, an
air traffic controller from Atlanta who flies a M20J 201, said it was
one of the smoothest Caravans yet. "There was very, very little
chatter on the radio; usually when you hear chatter on the radio, that
means something is going wrong."
Information about next
year’s Caravan is available on its site, www.mooneycaravan.com.
The Mooneys, Bonanzas, and Cessnas are
quite different aircraft, but the pilots in the group arrivals all share
a passion for spending time with like-minded people at the Mecca of
aviation. Said Ted Larkin, who came from Atlanta in his 1963 Cessna
C-172, "I went to First Flight (airport) at Kitty Hawk last year.
Landing there and landing here is almost the same feeling. It’s kind
of like going to a church. You have a feeling of reverence."
