Salinas CA AOPA Fly-In (May 16th, 2015)

[GeorgePerry]

For any Mooniacs planning on attending the Salinas CA AOPA Fly-In, please be sure to check out the arrival information video and download the pilot info packet.  Hope to see you there!

 

Salinas Arrival Video

 

Pilot Information Packet and NOTAM

[bonal]

Planning on being there for the one day, thanks for the info will review extensively plus whatever I can locate as well as the notams of coarse. Should be a great experience hope the marine layer stays offshore.

[GeorgePerry]

A little more than one week until Salinas!  Hope to see lots of planes with backwards tails!

 

http://www.aopa.org/Community-and-Events/AOPA-Fly-In/2015/About/Salinas-Fly-In

 

[bonal]

Watching the marine layer waiting to make the go no go VFR decision but I think it will clear off. Fingers crossed

[bonal]

This crud ain't lifting oh well guess we will go inland I doubt they will even be able to do the air show with a 2500 ft ceiling. Nice day for all the IFR guys. I will send a nice message to AOPA asking why they would select a location only 10 miles from the coast. That layer could have just as easily been on the deck.

[DaV8or]

This crud ain't lifting oh well guess we will go inland I doubt they will even be able to do the air show with a 2500 ft ceiling. Nice day for all the IFR guys. I will send a nice message to AOPA asking why they would select a location only 10 miles from the coast. That layer could have just as easily been on the deck.

 

I'm sure it's a tough one to plan for them. They need to find an airport that can accommodate lots of aircraft parking and space to set up vendors, doesn't cost too much to take over, has near by hotels and hopefully has some attractions for things to do other than the fly in.

 

Weather wise, out in the valley would be a better choice due to the 300+ days of sunshine we get here, but I'm having a real tough time thinking of an airport located in the valley that anyone would want to travel a great distance and spend any time there. As it is, Salinas isn't all that great. It'll be interesting to see how attendance goes. Sadly I can't go due to my plane being in pieces and I don't think I can bare to drive there.

[bonal]

Vindicated! Still marginal and the TFR is active.

[helitim]

"Weather wise, out in the valley would be a better choice due to the 300+ days of sunshine we get here, but I'm having a real tough time thinking of an airport located in the valley that anyone would want to travel a great distance and spend any time there."

We ended up driving down at 0430 this AM to be there in time for my 0600 volunteer shift. It was mostly an IFR morning. I think a few planes scooted in underneath once the sun was up for a bit. On the drive down, we discussed the wisdom of choosing Salinas in the first place when there are so many options in the Central Valley. Yes, it's nice to be near the ocean but, undependable for weather. I know 6 different pilots from my home field other than myself who had scheduled to fly down and were prevented because of the weather.

I am IFR rated but decided against it because I would have been flying single pilot IMC at night shooting an approach in between the ridges to an unfamiliar airport. Can it be done? Of course but, with the wife on board, it wasn't necessary to take the chance and risk upsetting her or the other issues that can accompany such tasks. We had a good time but, driving to a fly-in is just not what I had planned originally.

Maybe the powers that be will reconsider next years location.

[DaV8or]

"Weather wise, out in the valley would be a better choice due to the 300+ days of sunshine we get here, but I'm having a real tough time thinking of an airport located in the valley that anyone would want to travel a great distance and spend any time there."

We ended up driving down at 0430 this AM to be there in time for my 0600 volunteer shift. It was mostly an IFR morning. I think a few planes scooted in underneath once the sun was up for a bit. On the drive down, we discussed the wisdom of choosing Salinas in the first place when there are so many options in the Central Valley. Yes, it's nice to be near the ocean but, undependable for weather. I know 6 different pilots from my home field other than myself who had scheduled to fly down and were prevented because of the weather.

I am IFR rated but decided against it because I would have been flying single pilot IMC at night shooting an approach in between the ridges to an unfamiliar airport. Can it be done? Of course but, with the wife on board, it wasn't necessary to take the chance and risk upsetting her or the other issues that can accompany such tasks. We had a good time but, driving to a fly-in is just not what I had planned originally.

Maybe the powers that be will reconsider next years location.

 

I just occurred to me where they should do it next time. Mather Field in Sacramento. (KMHR) Loads of space, all the great valley weather, parallel runways, towered with approaches just in case and there are actually things to do and nice places to stay in Sacramento. This would have been a better choice IMO.

 

If not Mather, than an alternate would be Mc Clellen (KMCC) right next door. Lots of space, but only one runway and no tower.

[bonal]

Your home field LVK is big enough and has lots to do plus plenty of hotels etc. Santa Rosa or Napa have pretty consistent weather and are surrounded by wine country etc. Oh well at least my weather judgement skills are working. How was the turn out and were they able to do the air show or was celing too low. Buchanon in Concord is also plenty big and has lots of stuff near by.

[DaV8or]

Your home field LVK is big enough and has lots to do plus plenty of hotels etc. Santa Rosa or Napa have pretty consistent weather and are surrounded by wine country etc. Oh well at least my weather judgement skills are working. How was the turn out and were they able to do the air show or was celing too low. Buchanon in Concord is also plenty big and has lots of stuff near by.

 

Those locations are more interesting, but I've been flying around this patch of ground a long time now and I can say that Livermore, Concord, Santa Rosa and Napa could all easily be overcast and Sacramento have clear skies. Santa Rosa is actually overcast a lot and often with very low ceilings. Napa, Livermore and Concord are all on the boundary of the seasonal marine layer and may or may not be overcast. Sacramento is nearly a sure thing. Like I said, 300+ days of VFR out here, most of them clear skies.

[bonal]

Those locations are more interesting, but I've been flying around this patch of ground a long time now and I can say that Livermore, Concord, Santa Rosa and Napa could all easily be overcast and Sacramento have clear skies. Santa Rosa is actually overcast a lot and often with very low ceilings. Napa, Livermore and Concord are all on the boundary of the seasonal marine layer and may or may not be overcast. Sacramento is nearly a sure thing. Like I said, 300+ days of VFR out here, most of them clear skies.

You are correct they do have some marine effect but it is more consistent for clearing we fly Santa Rosa all the time and hardly ever have to wait past 0900 for the clearing and on our many trips to LVK we pass over Napa and Concord in the morning usually clear. When it comes to consistent weather you can't beat the valley but then it begs the question what to do there

[bonal]

Livermore Napa concord all marginal at this time , this is why I don't gamble...damn

[helitim]

Pretty much any of the large airports up and down the Central Valley would be better choices for weather. The fact that Mather is located next to Sacramento would be an excellent choice. Stockton, Merced, Fresno would all be good weather choices but less ancillary options off the field maybe.

The turn out was fair I guess. Never heard any attendance estimates. There were so many volunteers, we were in each other's way with the lower numbers of aircraft. We were literally putting a tow bar on your aircraft and pushing you back into position before you could get out of the aircraft. We would ask the pilot "mags and master off? ". When he said yes, the aircraft was being moved.

There were several good seminars. My personal favorite was Rod Machado. Great stories, insightful observations and freakin' funny guy.

Maybe next year will be better.