North 40 - WiFi 2016

[PeterEAA]

AirVenture 2016 was again the highlight of my flying activities in 2016 !
This year was my 7th time attending AirVenture !

As a German foreign pilot flying into AirVenture WiFi is very importend for me
while camping on North 40, email, Whatsapp, flightplanning and so on.

The WiFi on North 40 was nearly not existing this year !
Ether there was no WiFi signal or the signal was so weak that the connection does not work !

Last time I attended AirVenture in 2013 everything was fine, so what happened to the WiFi
at the 2 showerhouses at North 40 ??

What where your experiences this year with North 40 WiFi ??

Peter

[CHICAGORANDY]

looks like there were 4 Wifi hot spots along Wittman Rd and one at Weeks Hangar on the north end.

https://www.eaa.org/~/media/files/ai...rounds-map.pdf

I can't speak to the signal strength but would suggest for next year to contact the Wifi help desk while there - from the AirVenture website:

Check the AirVenture grounds map for Wi-Fi hotspots and Wi-Fi stations with electricity. (Note: Roaming service is unavailable.) Call or visit the Wi-Fi help desk (920-230-7831) at the Camp Scholler Internet Café from 8 a.m.-noon and 1 p.m.-5 p.m. daily.

[PeterEAA]

During my stay I contacted the WiFi helpdesk at AirVenture.
They knew about the problem but couldn't do anything !
There had been a WiFi Hotspot at both showerhouses at North 40,
the old and the new one, but WiFi did not work in both places !
And it doesn't really help that there are other hotspots on the grounds
when you need it right at the showerhouse in the morning !

[CHICAGORANDY]

Discussing 'tech' anything is outside my comfort zone - lol - so I can only suggest contacting EAA directly:

http://www.eaa.org/en/eaa/about-eaa/contact-us

No doubt they welcome all input, positive and negative, to help make next year an even more enjoyable experience for everyone?

[FlyingRon]

WIFI is always dicey especially during peak periods. I alternate between using the onsite wifi and my T-Mobile Android portable hot spot. The one thing I can say is that the cell coverage on most of the major networks (ATT, T-MOBILE, and VERIZON at least) has gotten a lot better over the years. It went from dead in a water a few years back to periodically spotty (I alternated between my ATT and my friends VERIZON phone calling pilots to relocate during Sloshksoh with varying results) to "fairly reliable."