Flying to Reno - Airport recommendations please.

[jabodine]

My wife and I plan a trip to Santa Maria, Ca in the near future with overnight stop in Reno. Seeking recommendations regarding GA friendly airports at both locations.

 

Best regards,

Jonathan Bodine

[N201MKTurbo]

Stead is much cheaper, Reno is closer to the hotels and casinos. If you are real adventurous there is always Spanish Springs.

[N201MKTurbo]

Also consider Trukee, it is a great airport with cheap fuel.

[Jerry 5TJ]

KRNO is GA-friendly.  Atlantic FBO has treated me well the several times I visited there in a single engine prop. 

[carqwik]

+1 on KRNO...definitely GA accessible and friendly.  Watch density altitude in the summer on the climb out....it can take a long time to get high enough to cross the Sierra Nevadas.  Btw, what is your route from KRNO to KSMX?

[jabodine]

Tentative route: KRNO, FMG, SWR, HNW, LIN, ECA, PXN, ROM, PRB, MQO, KSMX. If you have suggestions regarding better routing I am all ears.

 

Best regards,

Jonathan Bodine

[47U]

Jonathan, It's pretty steep between FMG-SWR with a 12K MCA and 13K MEA on V6. Consider going VFR and fly up the Verdi pass along I-80. Departure is used to that route and you can slide through there at 10.5K. Leaving in the morning it's almost certain to be VMC and less bumpy over the mountains. Reno departure will dump you and ZOA might not want to work you, but you'll be in NORCAL airspace soon enough and they'll stay with you all the way down the valley. If there's a marine layer at the destination you can get a pop-up IFR to get down.

Fly safe, Tom

[carqwik]

+1 again on VFR to cross the mountains...following I-80 is the best plan from Reno.  VERDI is clearly marked on the sectional.  You can't make the climb to the MEA on V6 in time VFR to cross the rocks unless you want to climb in the hold at FMG....

 

I left Reno mid-afternoon in the early fall about five years ago (at nearly mgtow) going back to Phoenix and suffice to say, climb performance wasn't great even with the turbo Lyc...there's a 7500 foot mountain just south of Reno that we might have crossed by 1000 feet or so...

[jbs007]

I stopped at Silver Springs for gas flying from San Diego to Seattle in the summer time and it was like a ghost town.  It was easy and cheap.  Peed in the outlying dirt surrounding the fuel pump and went on my way...

[TTaylor]

I fly over that area VFR several times per year, the South Lake Tahoe to near Placerville and turn south is what I use most of the time.  I like to be 12K or higher as I pass the high ground just southwest of KTVL. 

 

In May I was forced to fly north of the lake and that was fine but did not feel any more comfortable than crossing about 10 miles south of TVL near Luther Pass and then flying toward SPOOK and then turning south once I felt I could reach one of the airports in the valley.  It is good to look at Eagle Ridge on Google Earth just so you know what it looks like if you had to go there.

 

On my return flight I tried a new route over Columbia (O22), Bear Valley (private) and Alpine County (M45), and again these are much better above 12K. 

 

All of the crossings at 12 to 13K mean some of your engine out landing spots will be lakes.  I only fly where I can reach a lake, flat fields or an airport.

[jabodine]

A little update:

 

My wife and I finally took the trip to Santa Maria and back. Filed IFR all the way both directions.  Stopped at KTWF both ways and had good service. Also stopped KRNO going and coming. For both flights out of Reno I was given the Mustang 7 SID. Although climb rate is not the Mooney's strongest suite, I never did have to climb in the hold over FMG. ATC in Reno was superb. Parking at Santa Maria (KSMX) was outside the Raddison which controlled access to the tie down area. It was a great experience. Thanks for everyones input/help.

 

Best regards,

Jonathan Bodine

   

[xrs135]

I probably talked to you on the radio! Sounds like a nice trip. What kind of Mooney do you fly? I remember seeing a red/white/blue 60's - ish C on the ramp not long ago...

The Atlantic Aviation facility in Reno is definitely one of the nicest in the country!

[jabodine]

Mine is a 1971 M20E with speed upgrades and the Butler tail. It is white over maroon. Next time I'm in Reno I'd like to make contact.

 

Best regards,

Jonathan Bodine

[xrs135]

Mine is a 1971 M20E with speed upgrades and the Butler tail. It is white over maroon. Next time I'm in Reno I'd like to make contact.

Best regards,

Jonathan Bodine

Absolutely! I recall your plane on the ramp. Nice looking bird. I actually remember drooling over all the speed mods