Spirit of St. Louis replica at EAA Aviation Museum

EAA Aviation Museum

If you love aviation, and you happen to find yourself in Wisconsin, then you need to visit the EAA Aviation Museum, located in Oshkosh, WI.  The EAA, or Experimental Aircraft Association, is one of the largest organizations for aviation enthusiasts, with over 200,000 members and nearly 1,000 chapters worldwide.  Founded in 1953, the EAA is well known for supporting homebuilt aircraft, as well as hosting EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, the annual gathering of over half a million aviation fans.  But even when AirVenture is not going on, it's still well worth the trip to Oshkosh to visit the EAA Aviation Museum.

 Spirit of St. Louis replica at EAA Aviation Museum

First opened in 1983, the Museum features a collection of over 200 aircraft and 20,000 artifacts, including many vintage, homebuilt, racing, and stunt aircraft.  There is a large area dedicated to Burt Rutan and his famous aircraft, including replicas of Space Ship One and the Rutan Model 76 Voyager, the first aircraft to fly around the world without stopping or refueling.  Other highlights include replicas of the Wright Flyer and Lindbergh's Ryan NYP "Spirit of St. Louis", a Curtiss Pusher, a Bleriot XI, a Curtiss Jenny, a Van's Aircraft RV-3, a Christen Eagle II, and the Cirrus VK-30.

Space Ship One replica at EAA Aviation Museum

In addition to the main exhibit area, you can also visit the Eagle Hangar, which features many aircraft and other fascinating exhibits from World War II, and Pioneer Airport (from May to October), where you can see a living history re-creation of what airports were like during the early days of air travel and marvel at over 50 vintage airplanes.  If the weather is good, you may even get a chance to take an airplane ride in a 1929 Travel Air E-4000 or a 1927 Swallow.  For kids ages 8 to 17, free "Young Eagles" flights are available to introduce the next generation of aviators to the magic of flight.

Eagle Hangar World World II aircraft at EAA Aviation Museum

Set aside several hours to fully immerse yourself in everything the EAA Aviation Museum has to offer.   The museum is open 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. seven days a week (except certain holidays).  Check their website for more information: https://www.eaa.org/eaa-museum

Until next time, keep looking to the sky and keep dreaming.

- Matt

 

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