Equipment Suggestions for Airplane Camping

[Kyle Boatright]

I have to say that I'm more in Tralika's camp (sorry...). I'm a bit mystified by the 'aluminum only' concept. I camped for years at OSH & SNF in dome tents for which I never paid more than around $60 (Admittedly, it has been a while), none of which had any aluminum except the fittings for the poles.

Charlie

I've seen fiberglass (or maybe plastic) tent poles shatter. They can't be repaired at that point. Aluminum poles usually kink instead of break. In an emergency, you can splice one with duct tape and a couple of popsicle sticks.

But I've seen a buncha flattened tents at Oshkosh, complete with wet, cold people who had nowhere else to spend the night. That's the worst possible outcome, so do what you can to avoid it.