Airport Diversity

Jim Rosenow

Jim Rosenow

Line Up and Wait
Joined
Nov 8, 2014
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983
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KBJJ
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Display name:
Jim Rosenow
What started me down this path was that I was just sitting in the living room watching a 208 on amphibious floats taxi out for take-off....and probably a lot of folks can't say that :D

I'm amazed at how diverse our little airport, KBJJ, is. The 208 is based here and shares a hangar with a CJ. We've a a got 24/7 EMS helicopter on the ramp. A couple ag aircraft share their owners' hangar. For heavy iron, we have 6 turbines and a King Air. Half a dozen homebuilts and 3 or 4 (depending on what counts) aerobatic aircraft. All this in addition to a couple light twins, and maybe 30(?) GA type aircraft.

On the business end, in addition to the ag guys and EMS, we have another heli group that patrols either pipelines or power lines (not sure which), a small business that manufacturers consoles, etc for GA, and Aircraft Sales, Inc (which essentially re-man's GA aircraft to new).

We are just far enough out in the boonies to be attractive as a destination for training and get folks taking dual out of Skypark, CAK, and other surrounding airports. The EMS folks had 3 helis in here last month training day and night. Bonus points, Preferred Airparts uses us train new pilots in their turbo-prop DC3 (and Caravans). What a hoot! We've even had Goodyear blimps in here doing touch and goes!

Point of all this?...none really. Just happy to be here! :)

Jim
 
Jim Rosenow said:
What started me down this path was that I was just sitting in the living room watching a 208 on amphibious floats taxi out for take-off....and probably a lot of folks can't say that :D

I'm amazed at how diverse our little airport, KBJJ, is. The 208 is based here and shares a hangar with a CJ. We've a a got 24/7 EMS helicopter on the ramp. A couple ag aircraft share their owners' hangar. For heavy iron, we have 6 turbines and a King Air. Half a dozen homebuilts and 3 or 4 (depending on what counts) aerobatic aircraft. All this in addition to a couple light twins, and maybe 30(?) GA type aircraft.

On the business end, in addition to the ag guys and EMS, we have another heli group that patrols either pipelines or power lines (not sure which), a small business that manufacturers consoles, etc for GA, and Aircraft Sales, Inc (which essentially re-man's GA aircraft to new).

We are just far enough out in the boonies to be attractive as a destination for training and get folks taking dual out of Skypark, CAK, and other surrounding airports. The EMS folks had 3 helis in here last month training day and night. Bonus points, Preferred Airparts uses us train new pilots in their turbo-prop DC3 (and Caravans). What a hoot! We've even had Goodyear blimps in here doing touch and goes!

Point of all this?...none really. Just happy to be here! :)

Jim
Click to expand...

Like :)
 
Cpt_Kirk said:
Wish all airports were like that.
Click to expand...

Amen!...and the icing on the cake is that the runway is being re-surfaced and grooved as soon as Spring breaks. Life is good!

Jim
 
at KRNT

we have a seaplane base

a few helicopters (Sherrif's big Bell, and one or two others)

Probably 50-100 singles and twins (two FBOs and two flying clubs that have training aircraft from 162s to tailwheels, to aerobatics to SR20's)

I'm sure there are some small jets tucked away as I've had to wait out their wake turbulence before.

The big kicker is that one of the Boeing 737 factories is there, so while building, they bring them over to the blast fence for engine tests/etc. When they are done, they come out and depart on the same runway we all use for our our little Cessnas.

It's usually pretty busy. It's delta airspace (tower on field) under a bravo shefl and adjacent to the bravo surface area) Not unusual to see 4-5 in the pattern if the weather is any kind of VFR
 
Jim Rosenow said:
What started me down this path was that I was just sitting in the living room watching a 208 on amphibious floats taxi out for take-off....and probably a lot of folks can't say that :D

I'm amazed at how diverse our little airport, KBJJ, is. The 208 is based here and shares a hangar with a CJ. We've a a got 24/7 EMS helicopter on the ramp. A couple ag aircraft share their owners' hangar. For heavy iron, we have 6 turbines and a King Air. Half a dozen homebuilts and 3 or 4 (depending on what counts) aerobatic aircraft. All this in addition to a couple light twins, and maybe 30(?) GA type aircraft.

On the business end, in addition to the ag guys and EMS, we have another heli group that patrols either pipelines or power lines (not sure which), a small business that manufacturers consoles, etc for GA, and Aircraft Sales, Inc (which essentially re-man's GA aircraft to new).

We are just far enough out in the boonies to be attractive as a destination for training and get folks taking dual out of Skypark, CAK, and other surrounding airports. The EMS folks had 3 helis in here last month training day and night. Bonus points, Preferred Airparts uses us train new pilots in their turbo-prop DC3 (and Caravans). What a hoot! We've even had Goodyear blimps in here doing touch and goes!

Point of all this?...none really. Just happy to be here! :)

Jim
Click to expand...

Sounds like what a airport should be like :D
 
MIFlyer said:
at KRNT

we have a seaplane base

a few helicopters (Sherrif's big Bell, and one or two others)

Probably 50-100 singles and twins (two FBOs and two flying clubs that have training aircraft from 162s to tailwheels, to aerobatics to SR20's)

I'm sure there are some small jets tucked away as I've had to wait out their wake turbulence before.

The big kicker is that one of the Boeing 737 factories is there, so while building, they bring them over to the blast fence for engine tests/etc. When they are done, they come out and depart on the same runway we all use for our our little Cessnas.

It's usually pretty busy. It's delta airspace (tower on field) under a bravo shefl and adjacent to the bravo surface area) Not unusual to see 4-5 in the pattern if the weather is any kind of VFR
Click to expand...

Sounds like a blast!!

Jim
 
MIFlyer said:
at KRNT

we have a seaplane base

a few helicopters (Sherrif's big Bell, and one or two others)

Probably 50-100 singles and twins (two FBOs and two flying clubs that have training aircraft from 162s to tailwheels, to aerobatics to SR20's)

I'm sure there are some small jets tucked away as I've had to wait out their wake turbulence before.

The big kicker is that one of the Boeing 737 factories is there, so while building, they bring them over to the blast fence for engine tests/etc. When they are done, they come out and depart on the same runway we all use for our our little Cessnas.

It's usually pretty busy. It's delta airspace (tower on field) under a bravo shefl and adjacent to the bravo surface area) Not unusual to see 4-5 in the pattern if the weather is any kind of VFR
Click to expand...
Actually, it's the only B-737 factory.

I live on the hill west of the airport, about 2,000 ft. from the runway--the B-737 engine runs can be a little annoying, but the view is great! In addition to what MIFlyer wrote, KRNT has an A-26 and the Gweduck. Additionally, there is a banner tow operation that is very busy in the summer.
 
I think that you may be surprised that many small airports are just as you described, lots of variety.

In fact at Anoka County Airport, KANE on the north side of the Twin Cities in MN has always had a huge variety of aircraft over the years. In the hangar I'm renting now the previous owner restored a Curtiss Jenny in the 60's and a couple of Waco's too.
Over the years ANE has had a number of award winning homebuilts, antique and classic planes, not to mention all the warbirds.
There have been P-51's, a TBM, T-28's an Avro Shackleton and a T-33, which I got a ride in and a chance to fly once.
Currently there is a B-25, both of the only two flyable Howard 500's and an Albatross. There is one of the only two that I know of, P-82 Mustangs being restored, look that one up on Google.
It's also the home to "Sawbones" the Hawker Sea Fury Reno racer.
It's home to one of the largest collection of golden age antique planes in the area. They have 6 flyable tri-motors, two Fords, two Stinson's, one high wing and one low wing, A Krutzer K-5 and a Bushmaster 2000.
http://www.goldenwingsmuseum.com/collection/collection.htm

I'm lucky to live only 3 miles away and I can see and hear the planes from my front yard when they're in the pattern.
 
Consider yourselves all lucky. In the 70's and 80's Middlebury, VT's little state airport was a bustle of activity, with the FBO running an Ag operation and flight school. In addition there was a repair station, a warbird rebuilder/dealer and multiple locals flying for fun and business. The heavy rap in the morning dew of the pawnee's, then Ag-Cats and Thrush's rolling off the runway was a perfect wake up call. There was always something unique parked inside or outside the hangars, including a B-25, T-28, T-6, and later deHavilland Venom's and Fouga Magisters. The repair shop had its own unique customer set, including a privately owned DC-3 converted to a "executive" aircraft and flown by an eccentric chap that flew the Burma Hump route during the war. There was always something out of the ordinary for the repair station, Beavers getting turned into an executive toy, or camera ports being installed, or getting stc's for float installs. From Helio's to Beech 1900's and back to Luscombe's the one certainty was never knowing what would be parked out front tomorrow morning. And of course the local flight enthusiasts would come out for the atmosphere as much as to go flying. It was a great time.

Today, all of these businesses are gone. There are new GA hangars, an FBO that survives on a few students and a knack for doing good paint jobs on GA aircraft. Activity has dwindled to only a few arrivals and departures per day.

Appreciate and sustain what your airport has, because it doesn't take much for it to drift away.

http://youtu.be/KePs8Rd7DN8
http://youtu.be/QqgheaJjWRU
http://youtu.be/PxzSIcdlhrE
 
Doo! Doo! Doo! Lookin' Out My Back Door.... Thank you CCR!

Direct cross-wind out there.... 16 G 24 :D

Jim
 
Ha-ha you'd all be whining if you had real airport diversity. Say glider or skydiver ops started up or some ultralights moved to town. I hate airplane racists.:lol:
 
All we have are a couple dozen singles, visiting Army helicopters, an occasional twin or turboprop and two jets that drop in regularly. And the skydivers. Lots of evening and weekend traffic from surrounding flight schools making night landings and GPS and VOR approaches.

The field I learned at in WV had double the plane count, two twins, some light sports, Cubs, Champs, two twins, one Lance Evo turboprop, and a Stearman. There were skydivers there, too, and two powered parachutes, all right on the edge of Class D across the river.
 
I thought this was an adsb thread....
 
TUP has a little of everything. AH64's, 747s, 777s, 767s, 757s, Lear 60, several king airs, several Bo's, beechjet, air tractor, jet ranger, baron, stinson 108, pipers, cessna 400, 206, 172, 182, etc......
 
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