How did you get started?
Would like to hear how others got their start with the EAA. I started reading my father's issues of sport aviation as a child in the 80's. In the 90's as a teen I spent my free time after school at the airport. Took a long break and recently started living out my dream. 28 hours logged so far and counting. I hope to start building soon as well.
“It's the greatest shot of adrenaline to be doing what you have wanted to do so badly. You almost feel like you could fly without a plane.”
-Charles Lindbergh
In 1985 I went to see my Aero I professor at Auburn. I was a sophomore in Aerospace Engineering.
He had stacks of a magazine called, "Sport Aviation." He let me borrow one, and I signed up right away to get my own copies.
In 1988 I went to a presentation by an EAA member who worked at my company. He had slides to show from this airshow in Wisconsin.
My first convention was that year. I spent four days in a tent beside a rental car with my mom and dad. I was in a three-foot hover the whole time.
I've made it 24 of the 28 years since.....
Last edited by Antique Tower; 04-30-2016 at 01:35 AM.
Ever since I was in high school I wanted to learn to fly but did not have the opportunity until I finished college and started my working career. An older friend at work was building a Thorp T18 and invited me to the EAA meetings and over to his house to help buck rivits. I have always loved the various homebuilts but knew I did not have the spare time to commit to a demanding project like that. Shortly after that I purchased a C150 and my wife's uncle taught me to fly. The rest is history. Even though I knew I didn't have the time to build an experimental, I did refurbish a PA28 Cherokee from the ground up. At least that way I was able to fly a plane while I was refurbishing it.
I didn't get started with EAA until 15 years after I got my license. I was a loyal member of AOPA but had never paid much attention to EAA. Around 1986 the FAA proposed TCAs, Terminal Control Areas, subsequently renamed Class B airspace. Both AOPA and EAA opposed the proposal. AOPA's approach was NRA-like (though not so successful!), no way Jose, absolutely not, nothing whatsoever, end of the world, period. EAA's opposition was more reasoned, more graphic, more personal, much better articulated in my opinion. So that attracted my attention and I joined EAA. I first went to Oshkosh two or three years later.
By the way, I think the opposition was partly successful. As I recall, the deployed TCAs were smaller, more tailored to the location, and fewer than in the original proposal.
I came to EAA late. I got my private pilot's license in 1983. I heard of EAA, but thought it was exclusively for homebuilders. (I actually thought of building my own airplane for awhile in the early 1990's. I decided that since my car mechanic asked me NOT to try work on my own car anymore, it was probably a bad idea to try to fly an airplane I had built.) About that time (1993) I flew with my father in his airplane to Oshkosh for the fly-in. We were only there for the day, flying in and out of Chicago. I was VERY impressed, but still got the impression it was all about homebuilts. Hamfest for the aviation minded. I did buy an EAA auto-gas STC for my Piper Warrior, which indicated that EAA MIGHT do other things, too. Nevertheless I continued on with AOPA and CAP as my venues for aviation.
Then, in 2007, I bought a warbird. An O-2A, but a warbird nonetheless. The previous owner told me about Warbirds of America and I joined EAA and WoA. When they Skypig was finally TRULY airworthy in 2009, I made the pilgrimage on my own and met 500,000 friends I never knew I had.
I earned my license in 1993 and immediately purchased a Piper Tomahawk and took on a partner shortly thereafter. The partner's dream was to build a rather crude looking homebuilt called an RV-6. He owned a plans set and had the isometric cut-away drawing on the wall in his office (he was a co-worker).
That piqued my interest, so I read a few things about the RV-6 and became interested myself. A year after I'd bought the Tomahawk, I was browsing through Trade A Plane and found a great deal on an RV-6 tail kit and most of the tools required to build it. I called the guy, made the deal, and was in the airplane business. Soon thereafter, I joined the local EAA chapter to tap into the knowledge base there of experienced RV builders (1) and builders who were nearly finished with their RV's (1). Oh, and the chapter had a ton of Lockheed guys - everything from flight test guys to guys who worked in assembly and fabrication. I attended my first Oshkosh in the Tomahawk the next summer...
Kyle that was the chapter I started at... I was a flight test engineer at GELAC from 1987-89....
Once upon a time, back in about 1981, when I was working over in Minneapolis, a co-worker said, "Hey, I am going to visit my parents over in Fond du Lac WI this weekend. There is an aviation event in the next town up if you are interested. My dad might be able to get a ticket." I had given up being a low paid professional pilot and put my engineering education to work (much to the relief of my parents I think), and I had never heard of EAA. Low paid pilots spend their time looking for paying rides, not fun flying.
I hear that the folks who work the gate at the show recognize the look when folks like myself walk up the the gate. Its like being from Sierra Leone and being dropped at the gate of Epcot Center Disney. Your mind can't process all that you see.
And so I became an EAA member. I've lost track of how many times I have been back to Oshkosh. I have been there in an antique airplane no-radio, via the regular arrival, landed in close formation on runway 36, etc. Folks who have never been have no idea what they are missing. One year I happened to wear my Norseman pilot T-shirt when I stopped over at the EAA Museum and to my surprise, found myself standing in front of a painting of a Norseman. And someone came up and asked "Do you fly a Norseman?" The answer was "yes" and for 20 minutes I answered questions about the airplane. And I can say that I walked behind the IAC pavilion in 2001 and there was my Pitts. Passed papers and flew it home a little over a month later. Good times.
Best of luck,
Wes
N78PS
Last edited by WLIU; 05-01-2016 at 05:38 PM.
Been flying since 1993. Been an EAA member maybe three years. Had to join to be in the IAC. If I had my way, I would not be an EAA member after the YPP debacle.
1996 Quad City Challenger CWS w/503 - Sold
1974 7ECA Citabria - Sold
1986 Pitts S1S
Started flying a Cheyenne for a company that the owner was an airplane NUT. He TOLD me we were going to OSH. This is the sickest part I got paid to attend! Lol. That was 1989. YPP balogna aside, I love EAA and OSH and find myself getting pumped up months in advance.
Rick
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