This is Aero TV's Daily Update on EAA AirVenture Oshkosh for Tuesday, July 27th.
USA Today, which for whatever reason now has a standing policy of talking down general aviation, was out yesterday with a cheap shot at EAA AirVenture. Tuesday's story on page 3A appeared under a subhead that reads, "Air show in Oshkosh, Wisconsin has history of fatal crashes. The writer, Alan Levin, did acknowledge that the fatals to which he referred did not involve the airshow at Oshkosh, and that most involved obvious pilot mistakes, and many weren't even in the area.
Also below the fold, Levin admits that the incidents involving fuel exhaustion, stall/spins, and encounters with weather beyond the skills of the pilots are a microcosm of accident causes everywhere in GA.
But the most disturbing sensationalized distortion is a claim by Levin about homebuilt aircraft. "Accident data show that such planes have about a five-fold higher risk of crashes." Levin doesn't attribute that statement to any actual statistic, so we have no idea where he picked up that misinformation.
ANN CEO and Editor in Chief Jim Campbell got reaction from Dick Knapinski, EAA's Director of Media Relations.
In better news, Flight Design announced the availability of its popular CTLS on floats. We got details from Tom Peghiny.
We were introduced to a new company at Oshkosh this year. Oma Sud brought its unique Skycar to Oshkosh this year.
Electric aircraft technology is a growing story again this yea at Oshkosh. Sikorsky brought its Firefly electric helicopter technology demonstrator.
And finally, the ever-inventive crews of ANN and Aero-TV offer you a sunny look (now that the rains nave subsided at the more positive side of Oshkosh... the one apparently never seen by USA Today...
Join us again tomorrow for our next daily update on EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2010... from Aero-TV.
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