I hear rumor that on arrival into KOSH or if camping gets full,,, that home builts get priority ?? Is that a rumor ? Is this true ? If true how would it be implemented... If I am flying in along fisk how would they know if I am a home built ?
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I hear rumor that on arrival into KOSH or if camping gets full,,, that home builts get priority ?? Is that a rumor ? Is this true ? If true how would it be implemented... If I am flying in along fisk how would they know if I am a home built ?
They announce closures over the arrival ATIS and publish parking status on the website: AirVenture Aircraft Parking Updates | EAA AirVenture Oshkosh you can also text OSHARRIVAL to 64600 for updates on the current status of AirVenture arrivals. When you land you'll display a sign with your requested parking area (HBC, HBP, VAC, GAP, etc) and that's how they know. If the general aircraft parking areas are full (eg North 40, South 40) they'll announce it and GA guys shouldn't be landing. Again this is spelled out in the NOTAM. To the best of my knowledge, no show plane (includes experimentals, warbirds, and Vintage) have ever been turned away. Did I mention read the NOTAM?
Honor system. ATC won't deny you a landing clearance except in obvious cases like runway closures. It's after you land that things will get sporty. If you're in a Cirrus and both North 40 and South 40 are full and you don't have a reservation for hardstand parking at Basler (the FBO) then I suppose they'll marshall you back to the runway for a departure IF they really can't find a place for you. If they have announced parking is full on the ATIS for your category of aircraft, they are really expecting you to exercise good judgement, follow the rules, and go elsewhere.
If your plane is ADS-B Out equipped, the Fisk controllers know your secret.
It's obviously a rumor. They don't shuffle traffic around based on type. You don't see certifieds being told to do a 360, go into holding, or sent away so a homebuilt can get priority. I've watched on adsb numerous times RV's being sent to the back of the line after they tried to cut in. Between LiveATC and all the adsb sites, it's easy to see if there were any shenanigans going on. And with the South 40, running out of camping room is not really a thing anymore.
A few years ago during the first weekend and the week leading up, there was a ton of rain that made large sections of North 40, South 40 and the grass "taxiways" unusable. This coupled with taxiway construction around 9-27 greatly reduced the available GA parking and camping areas for the first days of the show till at one point they closed the field to GA parking and camping as the available space filled up. Homebuilt parking/camping didn't close during the same period.
South 40 parking has been expanded this year to include the acreage acquired several years ago. The area has also been made more user friendly with the addition of a couple of food services locations and a store for campers. Just left the grounds yesterday afternoon and it is hot, dry and dusty. The grass has gone from green to crunchy. Long term forecasts don’t show any significant precipitation, so all available space should be useable.