Palo Alto Airport is a

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

in the city of

Palo Alto Palo Alto (; Spanish for "tall stick") is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. The city was estab ...

Santa Clara County Santa Clara County, officially the County of Santa Clara, is the sixth-most populous county in the U.S. state of California, with a population of 1,936,259, as of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Santa Clara County and neighboring Sa ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, near the south end of

San Francisco Bay San Francisco Bay is a large tidal estuary in the U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the big cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland. San Francisco Bay drains water from a ...

on the western shore.

Facilities

Palo Alto Airport covers and has one

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paved

runway According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and takeoff of aircraft". Runways may be a man-made surface (often asphalt concrete, as ...

(13/31) measuring 2,443 × 70 ft. (745 × 21 m). Facilities at this busy towered airport include a staffed terminal and multiple repair shops: Advantage Aviation (Cessna & Beechcraft Authorized Service Center), WVAS Inc. dba Aero Works (Diamond Authorized Service Center), Rossi Aircraft, and Peninsula Avionics. The airport is also home to a number of flying clubs (in order of establishment): Stanford Flying Club (est. 1930), West Valley Flying Club (est. 1973), Sundance Flying Club (est. 2006), and Advantage Aviation Flying Club. The airport is located within one-half mile of

U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...

. First-time pilots should familiarize themselves with the complex Bay Area airspace, especially the overlying

SFO San Francisco International Airport is an international airport in an unincorporated area of San Mateo County, south of Downtown San Francisco. It has flights to points throughout North America and is a major gateway to Europe, the Middle ...

Class B and the abutting SJC

Class C airspace The world's navigable airspace is divided into three-dimensional segments, each of which is assigned to a specific class. Most nations adhere to the classification specified by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and described be ...

. Landing pilots should also watch out for bird and

jackrabbit Hares and jackrabbits are mammals belonging to the genus ''Lepus''. They are herbivores, and live solitarily or in pairs. They nest in slight depressions called forms, and their young are able to fend for themselves shortly after birth. The gen ...

activity. Fifteen miles of hiking and biking trails, affording multiple opportunities for

birdwatching Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device like binoculars or a telescope, b ...

, form part of the adjacent

Palo Alto Baylands Nature Preserve The Palo Alto Baylands Nature Preserve, known officially as the Baylands Nature Preserve, is the largest tract of undisturbed marshland remaining in the San Francisco Bay. Fifteen miles of multi-use trails provide access to a unique mixture of t ...

. The airport is also adjacent to a public golf course. Dining options within a short walk include the Abundant Air Cafe, and the Bay Café at the golf course.

Instrument approaches

Palo Alto Airport has one approach to runway 31. The RNAV (GPS) approach to runway 31 has 460' MDA/1-mi visibility minimum for category A approaches. The VOR approach has been decommissioned. * GPS Runway 31

History

The original Palo Alto airport was located adjacent to Stanford Stadium and was built in the late 1920s. Between 1934 and 1936, a new Palo Alto Airport was built at the airport's current location. In 1989 a comprehensive area history analysis was conducted by Earth Metrics, based upon review of extant

aerial photograph Aerial photography (or airborne imagery) is the taking of photographs from an aircraft or other airborne platforms. When taking motion pictures, it is also known as aerial videography. Platforms for aerial photography include fixed-wing ai ...

s. The photo reconnaissance flights were flown in 1956, 1960, 1973, 1974 and 1980 by the

U.S. Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the mana ...

, and are archived by the

U.S. Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and ...

in Menlo Park, California. Comparison of the aerial photographs indicate that no development had begun in the vicinity prior to 1956 other than the Palo Alto Airport and the Regional Water Quality Control Board Plant (terminus of Embarcadero Way). Between 1956 and 1960, no new development had taken place in the area; however, by 1973, the Harvey Gum Factory was on the subject site and structures were either completed or under construction at 1890 Embarcadero Road and 2440-2450 Embarcadero Way. Conditions were identical in the 1974 aerial photograph. In the 1980 aerial photograph, the Harvey Gum Factory is standing, and additional infill construction can be seen in the area such as the Baylands Business Park adjacent and to south of the site and the structure now located at 1860 Embarcadero Road. The Harvey Gum Factory was demolished in 1982, based on Palo Alto Planning Department records. In 2015 the

City of Palo Alto Palo Alto (; Spanish for "tall stick") is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. The city was esta ...

took over operations from

, after a 50-year lease had ended.

References

Notes

Sources

* * Shaw, Frederick J. (2004). ''Locating Air Force Base Sites History’s Legacy''. Washington, D.C.: Air Force History and Museums Program, United States Air Force. * Manning, Thomas A. (2005). ''History of Air Education and Training Command, 1942–2002''. Randolph AFB, Texas: Office of History and Research, Headquarters, AETC. .

External links

City of Palo Alto, airport page
* *
Palo Alto Airport Association

PAO Airport Joint Community Relations Committee
report July 11, 2005 {{DEFAULTSORT:Palo Alto Airport Of Santa Clara County 1940 establishments in California Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in California Airports established in 1940 Airports in Santa Clara County, California Buildings and structures in Palo Alto, California USAAF Western Flying Training Command American Theater of World War II