Fly-Out Destinations
Oceanside | Catalina Island | Santa Paula
Boulder City/Grand Canyon National Park
Other
Fly-outs
Oceanside Municipal Airport (OKB)
Oceanside, California
Oceanside Municipal Airport is about the closest public non-towered airport to the San Diego area. The City of Oceanside is home to Camp Pendleton, a training and proving ground for the United States Marine Corps.
Downtown Oceanside can be reached via the San Luis Rey River bike and walking trail, which is located directly adjacent to the airport. The airport is located about three miles from the beach, and those who are interested in strolling down the scenic trail can expect to arrive at the beach or at downtown Oceanside within an hour.
Those interested in getting to the beach quicker and by a more convenient route can do so by walking south on Airport Road to Mission Avenue (a 5-10 minute walk) and take the westbound bus on Mission Road. The bus comes about every 15 minutes at that intersection, so there is minimal waiting time.
Located two miles east of the airport is the famous San Luis Rey Mission. This might be of particular interest to those who are interested in learning about California history, the early California Missions, or are involved in the Catholic faith.
Two other places of interest (more on this below) will require a trip on Amtrak's Surfliner from Oceanside to downtown San Diego. The route by rail provides a unique way of viewing the Pacific Ocean while it traverses alongside the beach, and will cross over several lagoons enroute.
By the time we arrive at the Santa Fe Depot in downtown San Diego, the USS Midway is a short walk down the street to the docking area on the Harbor, and the San Diego Air & Space Museum is another 15 minutes by bus.
The USS Midway Museum
San Diego, California
http://www.midway.org
An extraordinary voyage awaits aboard Midway: an interactive experience transporting you through the annals of naval aviation and Midway's unparalleled 47 years of service to her country; a moving tribute to the men and women who have served and sacrificed for their country; an education center for students, youth groups and families; and a cultural attraction that reflects San Diego's unique heritage as one of the largest Navy ports in the world and as a cradle of naval aviation.
San Diego Air & Space Museum
San Diego, California
http://www.aerospacemuseum.org
Aviation history is truly a remarkable story, and it all unfolds at the San Diego Air & Space Museum. Your journey through the history of flight begins as you stand beneath a model of the Montgolfier brothers' hot air balloon of 1783 - the first manned vehicle in recorded history to break the bonds of gravity and lift man above the Earth.
Our International Aerospace Hall of Fame, the only one in the world, honors those men and women who have made a substantive contribution to the advance of the aerospace sciences. Exhibitry accompanying their portraits relates to the honorees and their accomplishments. Names such as Lindbergh, Montgolfier, Earhart, Gagarin, and Armstrong are here, all a part of the saga of the continuing conquest of air and space.
The Dawn of Powered Flight exhibit takes you to the sands of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, where you are introduced to the first successful attempt at controlled, powered flight.
Rare specimens of aircraft suggest the excitement of air combat in the World War I Gallery. Marvel at the entertaining and dangerous antics of the barnstormers of the 1920s in the Golden Age of Flight Gallery.
Mint condition aircraft in a mint condition museum - a Spitfire Mk. XVI, a Navy F6F Hellcat and an A-4 Skyhawk jet - these beautifully restored airplanes help you appreciate the increasingly complex technology represented in the classic military aircraft of World War II, Korea and Vietnam.
The Museum's display of space age technology, like man's desire to journey to the stars, may never be finished, for it represents an adventure which the human race has truly just begun.
Mission San Luis Rey
Oceanside, California
http://www.sanluisrey.org
Visit this historical jewel in North San Diego County, just a few miles from the Pacific Ocean and experience the beauty and tranquility on the 56 majestic acres. Walk through the Lavanderia (the largest archeological remains among the 21 California Missions) or stroll along the arched colonnade. You will be transported to the past, imagining the everyday life of the Franciscan Friars and Indians who inhabited the Mission more than two centuries ago.
Explore the museum, visit the cemetery, attend a retreat, volunteer, have fun at a special event. Discover the educational, cultural, historical and spiritual experiences offered at Mission San Luis Rey.
Catalina Airport (AVX)
Avalon, California
Catalina Airport is located 50 nautical miles southwest of Corona Municipal Airport and is one of the most popular flying destination in all of southern California. DC-3's are known to also land here daily, mainly to transport goods and supplies from Long Beach to the Island.
At an elevation of 1,602', Catalina Airport is also known as the "Airport in the Sky" due to the airport's location at the top of the mountain with steep sloping terrain in nearly all directions. Several pilots have likened the approach to an aircraft carrier landing.
The airport was built for and owned by William Wrigley, Jr., the chewing gum magnate and former Chicago Cubs ballclub owner. The runway had been built by demolishing the top two adjacent mountain peaks, and then hauling approximately 200,000 truckloads of rocks and debris to fill in the gap.
Construction of the airport was completed in 1946 and is presently owned and managed by The Catalina Island Conservacy. Prior to construction of the airport, the Island was only accessible from the mainland either by ferrying on the S.S. Catalina, or flying on an amphibious aircraft like the Douglas Dolphin provided by the Wilmington-Catalina Airlines. More of the Catalina Island's aviation history can be found by going to the Catalina Goose website.
William Wrigley, Jr. bought Catalina Island in 1919 after his first visit there, and from 1921 until 1951, the Chicago Cubs regularly came to Catalina Island to hold their spring training there.
Much of Wrigley's legacy can be found here around the island, from his involvement with the Chicago Cubs as the ball club owner to his contribution in the environmental preservation of the island by ensuring that it continues to remain its natural state.
This is a trip that you definitely do not want to miss!
Check out a few videos of the Catalina landing on YouTube by
clicking on the picture to the right .
Santa Paula Airport (SZP)
Santa Paula, California
Santa Paula Airport is roughly 77 nautical miles northwest of Corona, and is the closest non-towered airport to Simi Valley where the Ronald Reagan Presidental Library & Museum is based.
At Air Force One Pavilion, you can get a tour inside Air Force One and see what the "Flying White House" looks like from the inside and out. This Boeing 707 was first used by President Richard Nixon in February of 1973, and last used by President George W. Bush on August 29th, 2001.
President Reagan used this 707 more extensively than any other president, having flown a total of 1,288 hours in it. Other Presidents who have used this Air Force One include Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, George Herbert Walker Bush, and Bill Clinton. President Johnson's classic "white top" Marine One is also on display inside the Pavilion.
Air Force One was decomissioned on September 8th, 2001 at San Bernardino Airport (SBD) in San Bernardino, California -a non-towered airport just 22 nautical miles north-east of Corona.
This Air Force One is also the same kind of Boeing 707 that John Travolta owns with the Quanta Airlines paint scheme design.
For more information about the Air Force One Pavilion, go to the Reagan Foundation's Air Force One Pavilion website or click here to see some additional photos. There are also several home videos out there on YouTube as well.
Santa Paula Airport also has an aviation museum onsite called the Aviation Museum of Santa Paula featuring many antique and classic aircraft such as the DeHavilland Tiger Moth and the Howard DGA-15P.
Many famous pilots have landed here such as Charles Lindberg, Chuck Yeager, Roscoe Turner, Pancho Barnes, and Barry Schiff.Some of the Santa Paula-based pilots include Sammy Mason, Harlan "Bud" Gurney, Mira Slovak, Clete Roberts, Steve McQueen, and Walter "Matt" Jefferies.
The flight to Santa Paula includes several possible scenic routes including low altitude overflight of LAX Airport with 747's landing and departing below you, or by the towering downtown Los Angeles skyscrapers, over the Los Angeles Dodgers stadium, alongside the famous "Hollywood" landmark sign, and low and slow at 500' along the Malibu Beach shores lined with many unique multi-million dollar homes, or just simply right next to the looming Mount Baldy mountain and the north-western ranges which peaks 10,064', then over Burbank and Van Nuys Airport and finally down the scenic and beautiful citrus-filled Heritage Valley.
Las Vegas • Lake Mead • Hoover Dam • Grand Canyon
Boulder City Municipal Airport (61B)
Boulder City, Nevada
Welcome to the Fabulous, Fabulous Las Vegas!!!
I trust that this fly-out is pretty much self-explanatory. After all, we know that whatever happens in Vegas .............stays in Vegas.
Aside from touring the Vegas Strip, dining at Paris or Rio, visiting New York, New York, riding on top of the Stratosphere, or checking out the Luxor, Hoover Dam is also a great place worth considering being that it is located just 11 miles from Boulder City Airport.
Many personal air tours are available for seeing downtown Vegas or Hoover Dam by helicopter.
Even better, there is the possibility for a Grand Canyon extension to our fly-out if there is enough interest, since Grand Canyon will just be another 1.5 hours or 132nm away.
If you ever wanted to check out the new glass-surfaced Grand Canyon SkyWalk that stretches out 20-some feet over the rim on the Hualapai Indian Reservation, look no further than Grand Canyon West Airport (1G4), just 51 nautical miles east and just outside the Special Flight Rules Area.
Tours of the Grand Canyon Skywalk all begin at the airport terminal and the shuttle/bus service is free.....however there is a cost for entering the indian reservation and the skywalk, and they do not allow cameras to be brought on the structure. Wikipedia provides a good background on what the Grand Canyon SkyWalk is about.
Other Fly-out Possibilities:
Big Bear Airport (L35) - Two restaurants on field, Mountain Flying, Airport Elevation: 6,752'
Harris Ranch (3O8) - Great Steakhouse Restaurant, Runway: 2,820' x 30'
Kern Valley (L05) - Restaurant and campground on field, Kern River, landing competition
Santa Ynez (IZA) - Solvang, a Danish town 36 miles north of Santa Barbara. See NY Times article.
Oceano Co. (L52) - Walking distance from Pismo Beach Runway: 2,300'. See F. Holbert's webpage.
