GA friendly airport in San Francisco area

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Yogi

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Yogi
I am planning a family trip to San Francisco area in late November. Thinking of flying into either HWD or LVK. Would like to hear from local pilots if one is more preferable over the other. I am flying C182 and planning to go IFR.
 
Depends on what you want to do in the area. OAK is also reasonably GA friendly and closer tot the center of things. Purely from an airport thought I like LVK quite well.
 
HWD is a little weird because it's right up against KOAK's Class C. I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to a non-local without making sure you understand the tight turns needed on takeoff/landing. If it's between those two airports, I'd go into KLVK, tbh. Why not KOAK or KSQL, though? KOAK is practically two airports in one, one GA, one commercial.
 
LVK is quite a hike into SF. If you wanna go further out and take Bart in Concord would be a better choice IMO.

Kaiser Air @ OAK is easiest access to SF. There is a whole GA side with seperate runways to OAK seperate from the big iron and quick Uber ride across the bridge. There is now a $25 landing fee...otherwise HWD is my next choice.
 
Pretty much every airport in the Bay Area is GA friendly for transients, except for SFO and NUQ. I concur that if you're going into the city of San Francisco, don't be intimidated by flying into Oakland. It is a pretty easy GA airport and probably offers the best ground transportation options and transient services. Even though there's some fees, you'll probably spend the difference on an Uber if you go to Livermore or Hayward. Concord has BART and is a friendly airport, but that's a long BART ride. Livermore LVK, Concord CCR, or Reid-Hillview are usually good VFR alternates.
 
Thanks for the great info and advice!
 
Palmpilot said:
OAK became less GA-friendly when they instituted their $50 landing fee for light transient aircraft.

https://rampfee.me/search/koak
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*reads Foreflight comments* Oh crap that started October 2017. People are reporting fairly high fees there. Geez. They used to be really good for GA. I did some training there back in 2013 when I was getting my license and they were super friendly. :(
 
Doesn't sound like many good choices. I'm seeing that as a recurring theme - airports becoming profit centers rather than serving the community.
 
The wife and I stopped in to KLVK last week to do some shopping that the outlet mall. 5 Rivers aviation at LVK is really a nice operation! If you are inclined, we made a video of the trip on our YouTube channel. Search for "Shopping in Livermore, CA - This Old Airplane" (Shameless plug).

Cheers!
 
The SF Bay Area is ringed with good GA airports as PalmPilot said. Also Salinas (KSNS) or Marina (KOAR) are good if you want to visit Monterey or Carmel. There’s so darn Much to see here when visiting. I was recently in Napa wine country.
 
Hayward is your best best. Large GA airport, 2 runways, 2 FBOs which will have you set up with a car. No ILS however, but highly unlikely to be IMC anyway. Livermore is good but further out from the core of the Bay Area. Some good wineries out that way however. Oakland North Field is fine and even closer to SF but cater to the jets. Highly likely you will be shoehorned between some BBJs and Gulfstreams at Kaiser Air.

San Carlos is good, but small. Good restaurant among the tech money aircraft.

I guess it depends on where In the Bay Area you are focusing on. If just SF, do San Carlos or Oakland North Field(ATC will know you aren’t going to the airline terminal which is basically a separate airport with its own tower, so you don’t have to ask).

If you are used to a quiet little GA airport then Hayward is good. Just a few stops south on 880 from OAK, so close that the 28L traffic pattern is like 600 feet due to the final for OAK. Departing IFR during heavy arrival OAK time is a pain because you gotta squeeze between the heavy iron.
 
LVK is the most GA-ish, but I prefer going into Oakland because you're much closer to downtown and stuff
 
NordicDave said:
The SF Bay Area is ringed with good GA airports as PalmPilot said. Also Salinas (KSNS) or Marina (KOAR) are good if you want to visit Monterey or Carmel. There’s so darn Much to see here when visiting. I was recently in Napa wine country.
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Any reason to avoid KMRY if one is interested in touring Monterey? Are KSNS and KOAR more GA friendly? Is Salinas cheaper for overnights if planning a multi-day tour of the Monterey area? PIREPs appreciated.
 
hindsight2020 said:
Any reason to avoid KMRY if one is interested in touring Monterey? Are KSNS and KOAR more GA friendly? Is Salinas cheaper for overnights if planning a multi-day tour of the Monterey area? PIREPs appreciated.
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MRY had ramp fees for light singles for a while, but last time I checked, they had backed off from that.

https://rampfee.me/search/kmry
 
I've used OAK, SQL, and CCR depending on which end of town I have business in.

SQL is short-ish and wants the pattern tight, but sounds like a cakewalk for a C182. Be sure to run the prop right up to redline so that Larry Ellison gets an earful in the Oracle towers. Assuming he's not lounging around in his poser pagoda or designing his next 'compensatory' yacht. :D
 
hindsight2020 said:
Any reason to avoid KMRY if one is interested in touring Monterey? Are KSNS and KOAR more GA friendly? Is Salinas cheaper for overnights if planning a multi-day tour of the Monterey area? PIREPs appreciated.
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Monterey KMRY is a terrific airport and the approach over Monterey bay would not be easily forgotten. It is a Charlie airport and ramp fees are higher. KOAR does not have a FBO, but 10 mins by Uber or Lyft to cannery row. Both KSNS and KOAR are no fee daily and $10-12 overnight. Cheapest fuel in the Monterey area is KOAR.
 
schmookeeg said:
I've used OAK, SQL, and CCR depending on which end of town I have business in.

SQL is short-ish and wants the pattern tight, but sounds like a cakewalk for a C182. Be sure to run the prop right up to redline so that Larry Ellison gets an earful in the Oracle towers. Assuming he's not lounging around in his poser pagoda or designing his next 'compensatory' yacht. :D
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lol.. Larry Ellison.. outside of his obsession with the foiling catamarans in the America's Cup.. is actually a pretty cool dude with a neat past.. dad was an Army (?) pilot .. named after Ellis island (immigration), and spent time in various adoptive care homes, he didn't have the easiest go of things.. in fact, his more loving adoptive mother died in his second year of college and he never finished (at that school), and never really met his birth mother until he was something like 50 years old

I get it, we're supposed to hate rich people, but if you do a little research he's an interesting (read, not evil) guy.. plus his yacht Ronin looks pretty bad ass... like a 1960s stealth spaceship.. or warship turned yacht, and, for better or worse (for the Americas Cup) these foiling cats are pretty sick.. he's also a pilot who own one of those Marchetti 211 jets and also bought a Mig-29 (incidentally) however he can't import it... lol!
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Palmpilot said:
Sure, if you're flying a Citation!
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2,600 is certainly not too short for most (all?) piston GA planes, but I know lower time pilots who prefer 28R here locally at KMYF because 28L is "short" - which is about 800 feet longer than KSQL runway. Depending on one's skill and proficiency level I could see KSQL appearing somewhat intimidating turning base to final.. heck, we have people consider KAVX 3K runway "short" and requiring special skill to land at as well
 
Tantalum said:
2,600 is certainly not too short for most (all?) piston GA planes, but I know lower time pilots who prefer 28R here locally at KMYF because 28L is "short" - which is about 800 feet longer than KSQL runway. Depending on one's skill and proficiency level I could see KSQL appearing somewhat intimidating turning base to final.. heck, we have people consider KAVX 3K runway "short" and requiring special skill to land at as well
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I trained at PAO, which is slightly shorter than SQL, so I guess I have a different perspective. Both are over three times the ground roll of most of the airplanes I fly.
 
Palmpilot said:
I trained at PAO, which is slightly shorter than SQL, so I guess I have a different perspective. Both are over three times the ground roll of most of the airplanes I fly.
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yep, lots of people training at the airports and flight schools get spoiled with five thousand foot runways
 
San Carlos VFR departure procedure is the longest I’ve ever heard, and you have to read the entire thing back. It takes longer than 30 seconds so my radio thinks I have a stuck mike and stops transmitting.


Tom
 
I used to fly into SQL almost weekly, since our engine shop was there and it was a short drive up to Yoder Rubber in San Bruno for recapped tires.

My usual departure was a right downwind along the shoreline to the Dumbarton Bridge, then cross over to Fremont, thence on to RHV.
 
MooneyDriver78 said:
I guess technically it’s a VFR departure, transition to IFR after contacting approach, but yea that’s it.
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The fact that they said "Cleared to Half Moon Bay" right at the start indicates to me that I was IFR as soon as I was cleared for takeoff. :dunno:
 
My in-laws live in San Anselmo. What is the best GA option north of the bridge? Or would something like KOAK still be the best bet?
 
cmsuav8r said:
My in-laws live in San Anselmo. What is the best GA option north of the bridge? Or would something like KOAK still be the best bet?
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I don't remember whether I've ever landed there, but Gnoss Field (DVO) looks like a reasonable choice.
 
Geosync said:
Hayward is your best best. Large GA airport, 2 runways, 2 FBOs which will have you set up with a car.
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I totally agree with this assessment. HWD also has much easier access to public transportation options to "the city" than the others.
 
cmsuav8r said:
My in-laws live in San Anselmo. What is the best GA option north of the bridge? Or would something like KOAK still be the best bet?
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I agree with Palmpilot about DVO. It's got to be the best option. And there are no bridges to cross, which is a real hassle. I landed there only once a year ago and was really impressed how nice an airport it is.
 
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