Tim Olson
 
 
  Joined: 25 Jan 2007 Posts: 2882
 
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				 Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2008 7:37 am    Post subject: Flying to OSH - Read the NOTAM | 
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				For those flying to OSH, here is a good article in today's AvWeb:
 http://www.avweb.com/news/pilotlounge/pilots_lounge_128_oskhosh_arrival_198208-1.html
 
 I'll tell you that at first when I read it, I was a little put off
 that it made flying in sound so awful.  Flying in to OSH can easily
 be one of the highlights of a pilots life, so I hate to hear
 negativity about it.  But, at the same time, there isn't anything
 that he said that I can disagree with.  Flying into OSH just
 requires added diligence in planning, piloting, spotting, and
 general awareness.  Flying in to a local fly-in can have the
 SAME consequences. (I'll throw in a story from this weekend, at
 the end of this post)  Flying OFTEN can be one of the best
 things you do with your money if you want to be safe as a
 pilot....you gain things (EXPERIENCE) that no cockpit gadget can
 equal in enhancing safety.
 
 So do like they recommend, get current, get comfortable,
 practice spot landings, and READ AND CARRY THE NOTAM with you
 on your flight in.  Even when it gets real busy, there's no
 reason that flying in to OSH has to be unsafe...if you
 follow procedures and don't expect that all those around
 you will be as reliable.  This year I will fly in to OSH
 probably at least 4-8 times during the show, as for me,
 that is one of the best times a pilot can have.
 
 Here is where you can get the 2008 NOTAM:
 http://www.airventure.org/2008/flying/2008_notam.pdf
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 Now for a story
 ---------------
 
 This weekend, we had a fly-in at our local airport.  I went out
 for a few rides with people throughout the day.  On one particular
 approach, I had announced that I was on a wide left base for
 the active.  I turned final and announced I was on short final.
 I then got a call from a plane that said they were 1/2 mile
 final for the same runway.  There was nobody in front of me.
 That spooks a person.  So I asked if the other plane had
 the RV in sight....they said "I do, you just passed over top
 of us".  So I said I would break left and go around.  As I turned,
 I saw below me, at about 1/2 my altitude (I was about 400'),
 one of those small, army green cessnas, against the green
 trees and cornfields.  He was completely invisible when I was
 on base, and had come from a nearby airport and was flying
 in for a straight-in approach.
 
 We discussed it later, and I admitted that I could have done
 a better job spotting, and flown a closer pattern (there
 was nobody else in the pattern and I had just been very near
 base when I entered the pattern), but that he also could have
 used better judgement than flying low and straight-in, with
 a green plane, on the day of the fly-in....a full pattern
 would be more safe.  Contributing is the fact that he was flying
 a high-wing, and I was flying a low-wing.
 
 So nothing happened, in the end, but it does illustrate how
 some sloppy flying or poor judgement can be a bad thing,
 especially during times of lots of traffic.  Nobody is
 immune.  But OSH is a place where you just can't afford
 to take it anything less than serious in our awareness
 and preparations.....the same as we should always be doing.
 
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