 Owners
and operators of aircraft manufactured by the Beech Aircraft Corporation
and its descendants, including the recently created Hawker Beechcraft
Corporation, have two major milestones to celebrate this summer at EAA
AirVenture Oshkosh, July 23-29. Special activities, flights, and
exhibits at “The World’s Greatest Aviation Celebration” will mark
the 75th anniversary of Beechcraft and the 60th anniversary of the
Beechcraft Bonanza.
“Our members and visitors won’t want
to miss this celebration,” said Tom Poberezny, EAA president and
AirVenture chairman. “Just as Beechcraft’s influence spans the
history of aviation, this celebration will span the AirVenture grounds.
Whether in the Vintage or Warbirds areas, on AeroShell Square, or
viewing the air show, members and visitors to AirVenture this year will
see numerous commemorations and celebrations of Beechcraft’s role in
aviation.
“There is no better place to honor
Beechcraft’s contributions than at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, where the
whole world of aviation gathers each year to celebrate the passion,
devotion, and ingenuity that the love of flight inspires,” Poberezny
added.
The festivities will begin the weekend
before AirVenture’s kickoff, with Bonanzas to Oshkosh (B2Osh), a mass
arrival of scores of Beechcraft Bonanzas during the afternoon of
Saturday, July 21. The owners groups that orchestrate this annual
operation plan to expand its size and scope this year to recognize 60
years of the Bonanza, which has had the longest production run of any
airplane in the world. “Every year a sizable collection of our on-site
camping members arrives early to be on-hand for the mass-arrival
spectacle. They certainly won’t want to miss the Bonanzas this year,”
Poberezny said.
Sunday evening, pilots and Beechcraft
owners of all makes and models are invited to join all those Bonanza
fliers in AirVenture’s North 40 aircraft camping area for a barbecue
and celebration of their aircraft manufacturer’s 75th anniversary.
Entertainment will be provided by Hawker Beechcraft’s own house band,
the “Sons of Beech.”
During AirVenture, the commemorations
will continue with a special Beechcraft display on AeroShell Square,
AirVenture’s central showcase area, on Monday. EAA’s Vintage
Aircraft and Warbirds divisions will feature displays of appropriate
Beechcraft airplanes and their forerunners throughout the week. And the
weeklong schedule of air shows and showcase flying will include
performances and flight displays of Beechcraft airplanes old and new.
“A 75-year history of innovation and 60
years of continuous production of the Beechcraft Bonanza are truly
monumental achievements,” said Jim Schuster, chairman and CEO of
Hawker Beechcraft Corporation. “With all of the activities occurring
at Oshkosh this year, we are looking forward to celebrating with
Beechcraft owners from all model years,” he said.
“While we celebrate the legacy
established by Beechcraft, we’ll also show how all of that accumulated
knowledge comes together in the contemporary models that will be
displayed at EAA AirVenture. Today’s Beechcraft Bonanza, for instance,
builds on the tradition while applying the latest technology in avionics
and safety equipment. Paired with exquisite interior appointments,
today's Bonanza offers the ultimate in refinement, and we look forward
to showcasing that at Oshkosh as well,” Schuster added.
To find out more about Hawker Beechcraft
Corporation and the Beechcraft Bonanza’s 60th Anniversary
celebrations, go to www.hawkerbeechcraft.com
and go to the “View Special Feature” area for the Bonanza 60th
anniversary.
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