Camarillo Airport

Camarillo Airport is a public airport located three miles (5 km) west of the central business district of Camarillo, a city in Ventura County, California, United States. The airport has one runway and serves privately operated general aviation and executive aircraft with no scheduled commercial service. A separate airfield in the southwest quadrant of the airport is for exclusive use of light-sport aircraft and ultralights. The airport is the site for an annual air show "Wings Over Camarillo", organized by the Southern California Wing of the Commemorative Air Force.

According to the US Federal Aviation Administration's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, it is categorized as a reliever airport.

History
Camarillo Airport was established in 1942 when the U.S. Public Roads Administration acquired 100 acres of farmland to develop a landing strip for light planes. California State Highway Department constructed an auxiliary landing field with a 5000 ft runway, which was later extended to 8000 ft in 1951 to accommodate what by then had developed into Oxnard Air Force Base. The Aerospace Defense Command, via the 414th Fighter Group at Oxnard AFB, directed the 354th, 437th, and 460th Fighter-Interceptor Squadrons successively.

In the years following the closure of Oxnard AFB in January 1970, the Ventura County government actively pursued the acquisition of the former military base property from the Department of Defense for commercial airport use. This initiative ran into public opposition, opposed primarily by local residents concerned about the noise of growing commercial traffic. In 1976, the transfer of the airport was finally approved, provided the runway length was shortened to 6,000 ft by displacing the runway threshold each end, substantially at the eastern end. The agreement also did not allow cargo and large commercial passenger flights. By 1985, the airport was entirely managed by the Ventura County Department of Airports.

From 1995 to 2012, one of the last Lockheed EC-121 Warning Stars underwent a major restoration and dominated the tarmac. After completion of work, it was flown out to the Yanks Air Museum in Chino, California. The Ventura County Department of Airports began work in 2022 on a layout plan dealing with maintenance and other near-term projects for the airport.

Facilities and operations
Camarillo Airport covers an area of 650 acre and contains one runway (8/26) which measures 6,013 x 150 ft (1,833 x 46 m). It has two helipads, both measuring 50 by 50 ft (15 x 15 m).

For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2020 the airport had 108,566 aircraft operations, an average of 297 per day: 94% general aviation, 2% air taxi and 3% military. There were 383 aircraft based at this airport: 301 single engine, 35 multi-engine, 24 jet aircraft, 22 helicopters, and 1 glider.

The airport is an FAA-towered facility, with a number of Fixed-Base Operators headquartered at the airfield, including vintage aviation organizations.

The Camarillo Composite Squadron 61 of the California Wing of the Civil Air Patrol is based at this airfield, located near Sky Blue Air, at the east end of the airport.

The Ventura County Fire Department and Sheriff's Office each support large, separate facilities at opposite ends of the field to support new recruit and recurring refreshment training.

A "Viewport" opened in 2014, providing a child-friendly area to view the airport activities which had become difficult with increased security concerns.

The Chapter 723 of the Experimental Aircraft Association and its facilities are located to the west of CAF museum in two hangars.

CAF So. Cal. Air Museum


The Southern California Wing of the Commemorative Air Force and its museum are located to the west of the Waypoint Cafe in three large hangars. In addition to a collection of displays, models, and artifacts, the museum is home to the following aircraft:

Airworthy


 * Alon A-2 Aircoupe c/r N5694F
 * Fairchild PT-19B c/r N50426
 * Fairchild F-24R-46 c/r N77696
 * Grumman F6F-5 Hellcat Minsi III c/r N1078Z
 * Messerschmitt Bf 108 D-1 Taifun c/r N2231
 * Mitsubishi A6M3 Mod. 22 Zero c/r N712Z
 * North American PBJ-1J Mitchell Semper Fi c/r N5865V (only surviving PBJ-1)
 * North American SNJ-4 Texan c/r N6411D
 * North American SNJ-5 Texan c/r N89014
 * Ryan Navion c/r N91644
 * Supermarine Spitfire FR Mk. XIVe c/r N749DP

Warbird rides are sold on the PBJ-1J Mitchell, SNJ Texans, PT-19, and Aircoupe.

Static/Restoration


 * Curtiss C-46 Commando China Doll c/r N53594
 * Fieseler Fi 156 D Storch c/r N40FS
 * Grumman F8F-2 Bearcat c/r N7825C
 * Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21MF c/n 965306 (cockpit section only)
 * Yakovlev Yak-50 c/r N950DK

Though not part of the CAF's fleet, the hangars are also home to the following aircraft:

High Alpha Airshows


 * Antonov An-2R Big Panda II c/r N50670
 * Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17F c/r N117BR

Privately Owned


 * Beechcraft T-34B Mentor c/r N134RR
 * Boeing-Stearman Model 75 c/r N68837 (restored as a PT-13)

Accidents and incidents
On August 7, 2019, a private aircraft from Wheeler Express crashed 1,000 feet from the runway of the airport. Both people on board were killed.

On January 26, 2020, a helicopter en route to Camarillo Airport crashed into a hillside in Calabasas, California, under heavy fog, killing all nine people on board, including basketball player Kobe Bryant. The cause of the crash was pilot error and spatial disorientation.

The Ampaire Electric EEL completed the longest flight to date for an airplane employing electric propulsion after launching from the airport on October 8, 2020. The hybrid electric aircraft, developed by U.S. startup Ampaire, will be used in a series of demonstration flights with Mokulele Airlines on its short-haul routes. The plane had just undergone four weeks of flight testing over the Oxnard Plain.