Fake Snakes: Protecting Your Airplane from the Public

Synthetic serpents on the wings make just the right statement for a vintage airplane pilot.

Monday, August 21, 2023 at 05:19 PM ET

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Ron Johnson from Rockford, Illinois, has a particularly clever means of protecting his 1941 Ryan PT-22—he puts realistic-looking toy snakes on the wings. The message is clear: Don’t tread on me. [Courtesy Dave Lefavour]

Key Takeaways:

Many members of the public inappropriately touch or climb on private aircraft displayed at air shows, despite "Do Not Touch" signs.
Aircraft owner Ron Johnson effectively deters people from his 1941 Ryan PT-22 by placing realistic toy snakes on its wings.
The article highlights the challenges owners face in protecting their vintage aircraft from an uninformed public at events like EAA AirVenture.
Realistic toy snakes also prove useful as a simple deterrent to keep birds away from parked aircraft.

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One of the first lessons we learn as children is “if it isn’t yours, don’t touch it.” However, there are many people who seem to forget this when they see a really cool airplane. Despite “Do Not Touch” signs hanging on the propeller, there are some folks who touch, lean on, and even climb on or into aircraft that don’t belong to them.

Ron Johnson from Rockford, Illinois, has a particularly clever means of protecting his 1941 Ryan PT-22—he puts realistic-looking toy snakes on the wings. The message is clear: Don’t tread on me.