To most, the tennis ball and pool noodle are used for summertime fun. For aviators, however, they can serve a variety of purposes. A walk around the grounds at Oshkosh reveals their many potential uses in aviation.
Almost everyone who has spent time around high-wing airplanes knows the pain of slamming their forehead into the trailing edge of the wing while distracted. (I distinctly remember doing so the day before my first flying lesson and wondering if I could be trusted to fly an airplane if I couldn’t even walk around one.) Here, pool noodles have been deployed to protect unsuspecting heads from such a common fate.
Even the U.S. military uses pool noodles — they deployed them to protect civilians entering and exiting their helicopter in Boeing Plaza.
At the seaplane base, marshals have used cut-down noodles to help bring airplanes into the docks, making them easily retrievable should the need arise.
In the aerobatics section of the grounds, you can find both pool noodles and tennis balls helping to protect the more delicate parts of the aircraft, as well as the shins of adult attendees and younger visitors.
I also came across an airplane where tennis balls were used to ease the sometimes frustrating task of putting on window covers.
By being both lightweight and cheap, pool noodles and tennis balls have shown themselves to be valuable additions to a pilot’s toolbox. Although don’t forget your roll of duct tape, either.