It's Summertime... And That Means That Oshkosh Is Right Around The Corner!! A few weeks ago, ANN's Paul Plack had the chance to sit down amid all the chaos of the spring airshow season and have a one-on-one chat with EAA Prez, Tom Poberezny... they covered some interesting topics... Homebuilding, the 51% Rule, and course, OSHKOSH 2008. For those of you leading VERY sheltered lives, Tom Poberezny was first elected president of EAA in 1989. Since that time, EAA claims that membership in the organization has increased 40 percent, to 170,000 members worldwide. An accomplished aviator in his own right, Poberezny was a member of the U.S. National Unlimited Aerobatic Team that captured the World Championship in 1972. The following year, he won the U.S. National Unlimited Aerobatic Championship. He subsequently flew for 25 years as one wing of the legendary Eagles Aerobatic Team (originally the Red Devils), the most successful civilian precision flying team in history. During his career with EAA, Poberezny has overseen a number of the organization’s milestone events. In the late 1970s he spearheaded EAA’s first major capital campaign, which supported construction of the current EAA Aviation Center headquarters and museum complex at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, Wis. In 1992, he led the creation of EAA’s Young Eagles, which has become the most successful aviation youth program in history. Realizing the importance of mentoring to the future of aviation, EAA aimed to give one million kids between the ages of 8 and 17 an airplane flight by the centennial of powered flight on Dec. 17, 2003. The one millionth Young Eagle was flown in October 2003, celebrating the efforts of 85,000 EAA volunteers to reach the goal. The Young Eagles Program continues to fly 100,000 young people annually. One of Poberezny’s most demanding roles has been chairman of the annual EAA AirVenture Fly-In Convention for more than 25 years. During that time, EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, as it is now known, has grown to be ...
