Following are just some of my photos from Oshkosh 2011.  Many of us will remember this Oshkosh fly-in for many years thanks to the "Zeniths to Oshkosh" initiative which included EAA's official "Chris Heintz Day" activities on July 25, 2011, and the Zenith builder banquet to honor Chris Heintz.

Above, we depart for Oshkosh from Mexico, Missouri.  This year we brought our new STOL CH 750 demo aircraft (left) and a brand-new CH 650 low-wing cruiser powered by a UL Power engine under a new cowl.

Above, at the Zenith booth at Oshkosh (North Aircraft Display Area).  The STOL CH 750 and the UL Power engine display with Robert Helms, manager of UL Power North America

Some of the many Zeniths flown in to Oshkosh.  There were many of each model, including the STOL CH 701, CH 750 and the CH 801, as well as all models of the Zodiac (CH 601 HD, HDS, XL and CH 650) and earlier Zenith models including the CH 200, CH 250 and CH 300.

It was great to see so many Zeniths on the flightline (located directly in front of the Zenith booth).  Additional Zeniths could also be seen in the homebuilt and general aviation aircraft camping areas, as well as in the ultralight area.

I also spoke with many AirVenture attendees who are current builders or flyers who were unable to fly in with their Zeniths (yet!), as well as numerous builders and owners from around the world, including China, Australia, New Zealand, European and South America countries, as well as from the African continent.  It's amazing how big our "family" has become!

Since AirVenture is a week-long fly-in there were new arrivals and departures throughout the week of the fly-in, so I undoubtedly missed some...

The opening day of EAA AirVenture was officially designated as Chris Heintz Day, so we were all invited to showcase Heintz designs on the ConocoPhillips Plaza (formerly AeroShell Square) in the center of the AirVenture exhibit area.  We taxied a nice representative group of Zeniths to the ConocoPhillips Plaza.

Chris Heintz was interviewed by Jerry Burke on the ConocoPhillips Plaza, discussing his designs and design history over the past forty years as Zenith builders, owners and enthusiasts looked on (despite lousy audio on the first day at the Plaza). Heintz also answered questions from participants.  Watch the video

Below, EAA's Mary Jones presents Chris Heintz with an impressive "trophy" to officially recognize EAA AirVenture's "Chris Heintz Day - July 25, 2011"

Following the presentation, Chris answers questions from the media. 
Read the story from Aero News Network by Maxine Sheer (below)

Below, Dr. Andy Elliot talks about his polished CH 601 XL which he flew in from Arizona.

Below, some of the onlookers at the ConocoPhillips Plaza, many of them familiar faces:

Later in the afternoon, five different Zeniths models participated in a Flight Parade showcase, flying the aircraft several times along the flight line:

Above, Al Beyer leads the flight parade in his Zodiac CH 601 HDS. Below, Matt Heintz on the mic describing the Zenith planes flying by. (Both photos by Joe Scheibinger)

See my next post in this series about the "Zeniths to Oshkosh" activities at EAA AirVenture 2011. 

Read Dave Gallaher's report on the experience of participating in the flight parade.

See Joe Scheibinger's excellent photos from AirVenture 2011.

See the Zenith facebook page for additional photo posts from last week.  

Watch the video: Zeniths to Oshkosh: "Chris Heintz Day" at EAA AirVenture 2011