1989 Oshkosh Celebrates Tour Report

On the Tuesday we flew out of Honolulu in a United DC-8-71 bound for Seattle, Washington in the NW of the United States. Day 1 in Seattle we spent the morning touring the massive Boeing plant at Everett. There we saw the Boeing 747-400 production line with aircraft for Air New Zealand and Qantas in evidence. That afternoon we visited the Museum of Flight at King County Airport. While there the group witnessed the official handover and departure for London of the first two 747-400s for British Airways. Seattle is in a particularly scenic part of the United States and this was even more appreciated the following day when we had a thirty minute flight round the local waterways in Beaver floatplanes of Lake Union Air.

From Seattle we flew to Chicago onboard a United Airlines DC-10-10. On arrival our waiting coach took us into the centre of ‘The Windy City’, where we picked up our tour guide. This enabled us to enjoy this city more, both from ground level and of the panoramic view afforded from the skydeck of the Sears Tower.

Saturday 29th was the day we had all been looking forward to and expectation grew as we boarded our United Express F27-500 for the one hour flight to Wittman Field, Oshkosh. What a sight greeted our eyes with a reported 15,000 plus aircraft on the airfield. This then was to be our home for the next four days and there was plenty to do to keep the group occupied. Whether looking at the aircraft themselves or getting involved in the myriad of workshops and ground exhibits, you never really knew what you would find around each corner. In spite of the numbers of people in attendance, the atmosphere is totally relaxed as together you enjoy your common interest in aviation. For me Oshkosh 89 had many highlights of sound and sight. What more could you ask for than the sound of the Canadian Warplane Heritage Avro Lancaster, Kermit Weeks in his DH Mosquito and the Confederate Air Force in their Boeing B-29, or of over 50 warbirds in the air together. From a more modern age the awesome power behind the Lockheed SR-71 and the mass of dirty black soot blown out by the Boeing KC-135O as it took off. As much as the show itself was exhilarating so was watching how ATC handled the squadrons of aircraft that departed the field each evening.

We left Oshkosh as we arrived, on board a United Express F27-500. At Chicago we connected with a United 737-300 to fly to Dayton, Ohio. This is the home of the United States Air Force museum at Wright-Patterson AFB and it was here that the greater part of the following day was spent. What a tremendous collection of aircraft and artifacts are on view to the public. For one to be able to climb on board and walk through President Truman’s Douglas VC-118 ‘Independence’ or Eisenhower’s Lockheed VC-121E ‘Columbine Ill’ was a thrill in itself.

From Dayton we moved on to Washington, DC with USAir in a DC-9-30. Our first day there saw us visiting the Paul F Garber facility, which is the restoration and storage centre for the Smithsonian. Here we saw the famous Boeing B-29 ‘Enola Gay’ being brought back to life. We spent the morning walking through a number of buildings on the facility which were packed with a bewildering array of aircraft. That afternoon we joined the tourists looking over the sights of Washington. These included The Capitol Building, The White House and the Arlington National Cemetery. Then on to the awe inspiring Lincoln Memorial and the emotive Vietnam Memorial wall. In Washington our hotel was conveniently situated only a block from the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum and it was here that the group spent most of its time the following day.

Sunday morning we were off again heading south on a two hour flight by United 737-300 to Orlando, Florida, where we were to spend the next three days. The first of these was at the Kennedy Space Centre where we witnessed the Space Shuttle ‘Columbia’ being prepared for launch the following day. In fact the next morning more than half the group travelled back to the Florida coast to watch the shuttle being launched. Second day in Orlando was spent at the Disney concept of the Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow (EPCOT).

Late on the Wednesday we departed Orlando in a United 727-200 which took us west to Denver. This flight was made more enjoyable by the crew tuning all aircraft radio communications through the headsets of the passenger entertainment system. At Denver we changed planes flying south to Tucson, Arizona in a United 737-200.

Our first stop the next morning was the massive United States Air Force storage facility at Davis Monthan AFB. For the group this was a real eye opener as we drove past endless lines of aircraft, which numbered in their thousands. The afternoon was spent at the Pima Air Museum, which also has a massive collection of aircraft including many rare types.

From Tucson we flew to Los Angeles in a USAir MD-80. Our accommodation for the next four nights was on board the former Cunard liner Queen Mary which is moored at Long Beach. Next door was the massive Hughes Spruce Goose, which really has to be seen to be believed. Our first full day in Los Angeles allowed the group to relax at Disneyland. This was followed the next day by an excellent five hour tour of the McDonnell Douglas facility at Long Beach. There we were accompanied by two members of the Douglas family, who showed us over the MD-11 production line thus providing a fitting final highlight for the tour.

All too soon we were boarding a United 747-100 for the return flight to Sydney via Honolulu and Auckland. Over the preceding four weeks our group had visited eight States, plus the capital of the US. During this time we also saw many places of interest plus a broad cross-section of the aviation scene in the United States. D

AA would like to advise readers wishing to embark on a holiday with a difference that we will be running a number of specialist aviation tours in 1990. During July/August we will again be running a deluxe US Tour focusing upon Oshkosh in addition to being able to offer a shorter package that essentially takes in only Oshkosh itself yet leaves you free to pursue other activities Stateside, if you wish, before returning to Australia

Meanwhile, we will also be running a deluxe tour to Farnborough during August/September in addition to a much shorter visit that would be ideal for those visiting Farnorough or the UK on business, etc. Nineteen Ninety of course celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Britain and our UK Tour will be jam packed with exciting air shows to commemorate the momentous occasion. Full details of the two US tours will be released in our January edition with the two UK tours being launched in the March issue