Does that mean the decision was made now? Or will the decision be made on May 1st?Originally Posted by Sam Oleson
Does that mean the decision was made now? Or will the decision be made on May 1st?
Nothing is final until you snap on your arm band and go through the gates. ;-)
Honestly, they could pull the plug the day before the event is scheduled to start. It would be awfully inconvenient, but you do what you gotta do.
If they have AV2021, I'm going with the expectation that is will be a bit more restrictive or "scaled down." Most of us are now "conditioned" to this damn plague and we understand. Some will be disappointed because it is not going to be AirVenture as usual. I don't want to miss another AirVenture, even if it means a "scaled-down" version. What I really missed last years is seeing some of my long time friends from all over the US and some locals also. I also missed staggering around all those many aircraft that I have seen so many times. That's all I need from AirVenture and I'll take it anyway I can get it. AV2021 is about 6 months away. I am hopeful that IF the COVID-19 vaccine is all that they say it is, most of those who go will have been vaccinated and the risk of severe illness or death will be minimal. If I were one who did not get the vaccine, I believe I would not go.
That's kinda where my brain is right now.
I do still have a motel reservation - IF the mom-n-pop motel financially can stay open till July of course. Somehow or another without my meaning to I've turned 72 and won't risk a lengthy hospital ICU stay so unless I and a whole lot of folks get vaccinated twice by the end of June (assuming the two-dose requirement and full efficacy not happening until 2 weeks after the last dose) I will likely force myself to stay home. The notion of conducting my tram while sitting a couple feet from the huddled masses while also sharing a microphone with my fellow conductors sounds like a surefire way to get infected with any airborne disease.
There is IMHO exactly zero way to hold or attend AirVenture while maintaining 6' social distancing, so that mandate will need to be removed before opening day as well.
"Don't believe everything you see or read on the internet" - Abraham Lincoln
Unfortunately I don’t think social distancing will be gone by July. Its going to force EAA to rethink a lot of things. I would not be surprised to see some venues and services severely drawn down or even cancelled. I think tram services fall into that category.
It will be interesting to see how SNF plays out. I’m sure EAA will watch closely and adjust accordingly.
Dave Shaw
EAA 67180 Lifetime
Learn to Build, Build to Fly, Fly for Fun
Just writing down a few thoughts for cathartic reasons.
Here in TX, I really don't have any authoritative knowledge of what's going on. I read stories about doses going unused because of the logistical challenge in dispensing. Things like long prep times, etc., resulting in sometimes insufficient doses being available. At the opposite end, we prep too much and have to either discard or put out an Ollie Ollie All in Free call to stick the leftovers in an arm, any arm, regardless of "class".
That said (and I wasn't griping - was just citing that it's a bigger challenge than having doses just sitting there...), we're pushing up against a drop-dead date of - what - May 1st for a go/no-go decision?
Even if we (EAA) manage to continue with AV2021 by imposing "new" crowd measures, this is gonna be hard, folks. Look at those sporting events that have been held during the past few months (here in TX, $$$ is king, so bring the Rose Bowl, the National Finals Rodeo, the World Series, etc). Yeah, you wear a mask to get in the door, but it's hard to whoop it up for your team wearing a mask, so off it comes. As an example, for the Rodeo finals, Ft Worth obtained 30,000 test kits. Only 724 attendees used the tests. Of those, 13%, THIRTEEN PERCENT, were positive. A LOT of attendees did not use the masks.
Just a quick thought about distancing at AV, and it's gonna be a nightmare. We'll have to double the number of volunteers to be the Safety Patrol.
Think about it. I volunteer in the workshops. I'm standing there across a 2' table with 2-3 folks on the other side, trying to learn how to work metal. We're standing there 30 minutes or more depending on the person's skill. WELL within the 6' limit. We frequently have to get closer to demonstrate the intricacies of the process.
Then there's the exhibit barns, A, B, C, & D. For in-demand products, there's usually a crowd of 5 or so huddled pretty close to hear the salesman tell another client about the product. It's noisey, so you have to strain to hear. Even if a lower-tiered product, 2-3 folks in the same party will crowd the vendor to hear what their buddy is asking.
Bottom line is that aside from walking around airplanes (a great event anyway!), there's not a lot of space to conduct a lot of business. Unfortunately, I was not a member in the early days when it *was* basically members-only who were allowed greater access. Not trying to be a snob, but maybe we need to go back to that. But then again, EAA NEEDS the money from 150,000/day attendance. And I most assuredly want EAA to prosper.
Then again, if we use 6' distancing for concession lines, the donuts and 1' tall ice cream cones will have lines stretching all the way to the North 40!
At this point, I'll be there. I don't yet have my vaccine (over 65), but I have great genes, the "correct" blood type and a good immune system. This'll probably do me in....
How did AV handle the H1N1 outbreak in 2009? There were 60 million US cases that year. It was highly contagious.
How many fatalities? Were they near 400,000?
(hint: No.)
Ron Wanttaja
Not going to get into your fatality number as that is suspect based on reporting, but that is not the point.
The question was did AV do anything different for sanitization or change up anything that year? 1/5 the US population got H1N1, and it was a tough sickness if you got it.
I don't recall the exact year, but some time around a decade ago they started to put in lots of hand sanitizer stations around the eat spots, in the port-johns and other such places. I don't know if it was in 2009 or had anything to do with H1N1 but it was around that time.
Other than that I don't recall them doing anything differently.
Last edited by Jeff Point; 01-21-2021 at 09:31 AM.
Jeff Point
RV-6 and RLU-1 built & flying
Tech Counselor, Flight Advisor & President, EAA Chapter 18
Milwaukee, WI
"It All Started Here!"
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote