AirVenture OSH parking Tie Down

I know we all read the NOTAM before going with our airplanes to AirVenture and we all know that the aircraft get tied to the ground as soon as we get there.

EAA has an article
Member?s Mission: Eliminate Bad Tiedowns
that we all should read.

I am sure we all have our own way but the aircraft needs to be secure for when the wind picks up.

Great article and a great photo of the way to improperly use a "Claw." I see many examples of this every year at Oshkosh, and I am convinced that many of the tie downs that "failed" in the big Sun and Fun storm a few years ago were improperly installed.

On a side note- if you must install the claw with the rope at an angle (for example the tail tie down on a taildragger) the Claw should be oriented as shown in the photo with the rope (and thus the load) parallel to one leg.

The way the article reads, it would have you believe that all tie downs should be "vertical from the aircraft down to the tiedown" which is not correct in most cases - just for The Claw.

Are bad tie downs a problem? I have been going to OSH for almost 20 years and do not remember ever hearing about planes flying around in their tie downs. Then again, I cringe when I see the plane next to me not secured properly and it could damage mine in a storm even if mine never moved.

plehrke said:

Are bad tie downs a problem? I have been going to OSH for almost 20 years and do not remember ever hearing about planes flying around in their tie downs.

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It has happened as recently as two years ago.

An apocalyptic downburst that cut through HBC. A replica Fokker was lifted into the air and dropped on top of a Stewart Mustang, destroying the Fokker and doing a fair amount of damage to the Mustang. Several other aircraft were moved around and suffered minor damage.

One of the after the fact observations was about the poor quality of the tie-downs used to secure the Fokker.

plehrke said:

Are bad tie downs a problem?

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Only if a storm comes through... which happens at least once every year. Kyle beat me to the most recent example but there have been others. One improperly tied-down plane (or not tied down at all) is a hazard to many others around it.

Saw that one happen...

Kyle Boatright said:

It has happened as recently as two years ago.

An apocalyptic downburst that cut through HBC. A replica Fokker was lifted into the air and dropped on top of a Stewart Mustang, destroying the Fokker and doing a fair amount of damage to the Mustang. Several other aircraft were moved around and suffered minor damage.

One of the after the fact observations was about the poor quality of the tie-downs used to secure the Fokker.

Click to expand...

I witnessed that one happen. Made me sick to my stomache just watching it. had to hang on to a sidewall tarp in the forum building across the road for dear life to keep myself from getting blown over by the wind. So yes, it can get very bad for short periods of time.

They also started a text alert program last year to receive warnings of approaching weather. It's best to pay attention to the weather througout the day, and recheck/re-secure tiedowns as necessary.