Camarillo Airport is a public

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 ...

located three miles (5 km) west of the

central business district A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...

Camarillo Camarillo ( ) is a city in Ventura County in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 70,741, an increase of 5,540 from the 65,201 counted in the 2010 Census. Camarillo is named for brothers Juan an ...

, a city in

Ventura County Ventura County () is a county in the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, and the county seat is the city of Ventura. Ventura County comprises the Oxnar ...

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 ...

. The airport has one

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 ...

and serves privately operated

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 ...

and

executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dire ...

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 An air show (or airshow, air fair, air tattoo) is a public event where aircraft are exhibited. They often include aerobatics demonstrations, without they are called "static air shows" with aircraft parked on the ground. The largest air show m ...

"Wings Over Camarillo", organized by the Southern California Wing of the

Commemorative Air Force The Commemorative Air Force (CAF), formerly known as the Confederate Air Force, is an American non-profit organization based in Dallas, Texas, that preserves and shows historical aircraft at airshows, primarily in the U.S. and Canada. The CAF h ...

. According to the

FAA The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...

's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, it is categorized as a ''

reliever airport A relief airport or reliever airport is an airport that is built or designated to provide relief or additional capacity to an area when the primary commercial airport(s) requires additional capacity, on a long-term or temporary basis. Reliever a ...

''.

History

Camarillo Airport was established in 1942 when the U.S. Public Roads Administration acquired of farmland to develop a landing strip for light planes. California State Highway Department constructed an auxiliary landing field with a runway, which was later extended to in 1951 to accommodate what by then had developed into Oxnard Air Force Base. The

Aerospace Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command of the United States Air Force, responsible for continental air defense. It was activated in 1968 and disbanded in 1980. Its predecessor, Air Defense Command, was established in 1946, briefly inac ...

, via the

414th Fighter Group The 414th Fighter Group is an Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to the 944th Fighter Wing of Tenth Air Force, Air Force Reserve Command, stationed at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina. The g ...

at Oxnard AFB, directed the 354th, 437th, and

460th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron The 460th Fighter-Interceptor Training Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Tactical Air Command's 325th Fighter Weapons Wing at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, where it was inactivated on 15 Octo ...

s successively. In the years following the closure of Oxnard AFB in January 1970, the

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 Noise is unwanted sound considered unpleasant, loud or disruptive to hearing. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrations through a medium, such as air or water. The difference arise ...

of growing commercial traffic. In 1976, the transfer of the airport was finally approved, provided the runway length was shortened to 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 Star The Lockheed EC-121 Warning Star was an American airborne early warning and control radar surveillance aircraft operational in the 1950s in both the United States Navy (USN) and United States Air Force (USAF). The military version of the Lock ...

s underwent a major restoration and dominated the tarmac. After completion of work, it was flown out to the

Yanks Air Museum The Yanks Air Museum is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization and museum dedicated to exhibiting, preserving and restoring American aircraft and artifacts in order to show the evolution of American aviation, located at Chino Airport in Chino, Calif ...

Chino, California Chino ( ; Spanish for "Curly") is a city in the western end of San Bernardino County, California, United States, with Los Angeles County to its west and Orange County to its south in the Southern California region. Chino is adjacent to Chino ...

. 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 and contains one

(8/26) which measures 6,013 x 150 ft (1,833 x 46 m). It has two

helipad A helipad is a landing area or platform for helicopters and powered lift aircraft. While helicopters and powered lift aircraft are able to operate on a variety of relatively flat surfaces, a fabricated helipad provides a clearly marked hard s ...

s, both measuring 50 by 50 ft (15 x 15 m). For a 12-month period ending June 5, 2006, the airport had 153,360 aircraft operations, an average of 420 per day: 98% general aviation, 2% air taxi and <1% military. There are 600 aircraft based at this airport: 84% single engine, 8% multi-engine, 5% ultralights, 3% jet aircraft and 1% helicopters. The airport is an

- towered facility, with a number of

Fixed-Base Operator A fixed-base operator (FBO) is an organization granted the right by an airport to operate at the airport and provide aeronautical services such as fueling, hangaring, tie-down and parking, aircraft rental, aircraft maintenance, flight instruction, ...

s headquartered at the airfield, including vintage aviation organizations. The Camarillo Composite Squadron 61 of the California Wing of the

Civil Air Patrol Civil Air Patrol (CAP) is a congressionally chartered, federally supported non-profit corporation that serves as the official civilian auxiliary of the United States Air Force (USAF). CAP is a volunteer organization with an aviation-minded mem ...

is based at this airfield, located near Sky Blue Air, at the east end of the airport. The

Ventura County Fire Department The Ventura County Fire Department (VCFD) provides fire protection and emergency response services for the unincorporated areas of Ventura County, California, and for seven other cities within the county. Together, these areas compose the Ventu ...

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 The Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) is an international organization of aviation enthusiasts based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, United States. Since its inception, it has grown internationally with over 200,000 members and nearly 1,000 chapt ...

and its facilities are located to the west of CAF museum in two hangars.

CAF So. Cal. Air Museum

Spitfire Mk XIV - Chino Airshow 2014 (15422092524)

The Southern California Wing of the

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 The Grumman F6F Hellcat is an American Carrier-based aircraft, carrier-based fighter aircraft of World War II. Designed to replace the earlier Grumman F4F Wildcat, F4F Wildcat and to counter the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero, it was the United St ...

''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 The Ryan (originally North American) Navion is a single-engine, unpressurized, retractable gear, four-seat aircraft originally designed and built by North American Aviation in the 1940s. It was later built by Ryan Aeronautical Company and ...

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 The Curtiss C-46 Commando is a twin-engine transport aircraft derived from the Curtiss CW-20 pressurised high-altitude airliner design. Early press reports used the name "Condor III" but the Commando name was in use by early 1942 in company pub ...

''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: WW2 Restored B-25 Camarillo AirShow 8

American Aeronautical Foundation *

North American B-25J Mitchell The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Major General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served in e ...

''Executive Sweet'' c/r N30801 High Alpha Airshows *

Antonov An-2R The Antonov An-2 ("kukuruznik"—corn crop duster; USAF/DoD reporting name Type 22, NATO reporting name Colt) is a Soviet Union, Soviet mass-produced single-engine biplane utility/agricultural aircraft designed and manufactured by the Antonov ...

''Big Panda II'' c/r N50670 *

Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17F The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 (russian: Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-17; NATO reporting name: Fresco) is a high-subsonic fighter aircraft produced in the Soviet Union from 1952 and was operated by air forces internationally. The MiG-17 ...

c/r N117BR Privately Owned * North American SNJ-5C Texan c/r N6438D (modified to resemble a Nakajima B5N2 "Kate" torpedo bomber for the film ''

Tora! Tora! Tora! ''Tora! Tora! Tora!'' ( ja, トラ・トラ・トラ！) is a 1970 epic film, epic war film that dramatizes the Empire of Japan, Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The film was produced by Elmo Williams and directed by Richard Fleischer, T ...

'') * Beechcraft T-34B Mentor c/r N134RR

Accidents and incidents

On August 7, 2019, a private aircraft from

Wheeler Express The Wheeler Express (or later known as EDI Express) is a four-seat low-wing composite homebuilt aircraft. Development Designed by Ken Wheeler and developed by Wheeler Technology as a high-speed homebuilt aircraft for cross-country flights, the f ...

crashed 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 Kobe Bean Bryant ( ; August 23, 1978 – January 26, 2020) was an American professional basketball player. A shooting guard, he spent his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Widely r ...

. The cause of the crash was

pilot error Pilot error generally refers to an Aviation accidents and incidents, accident in which an action or decision made by the Aircraft pilot#Airline, pilot was the cause or a contributing factor that led to the accident, but also includes the pi ...

and

spatial disorientation Spatial disorientation results in a person being unable to determine their position or relative motion, commonly occurring during periods of challenging visibility, since vision is the dominant sense for orientation. The auditory system, vestibular ...

. 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 A hybrid electric aircraft is an aircraft with a hybrid electric powertrain. As the energy density of lithium-ion batteries is much lower than aviation fuel, a hybrid electric powertrain may effectively increase flight range compared to pure electri ...

, developed by U.S. startup Ampaire, will be used in a series of demonstration flights with

Mokulele Airlines Southern Airways Express, doing business as Mokulele Airlines, is an American commuter airline operating in Hawaii. The airline operates scheduled inter-island and charter flights among all Hawaiian islands with airports. Mokulele Airlines wa ...

on its short-haul routes. The plane had just undergone four weeks of flight testing over the

Oxnard Plain The Oxnard Plain is a large coastal plain in southwest Ventura County, California, United States surrounded by the mountains of the Transverse ranges. The cities of Oxnard, Camarillo, Port Hueneme and much of Ventura as well as the unincorpora ...

References

External links

Camarillo Airport
at County of Ventura website * {{Camarillo, California Airports in Ventura County, California Buildings and structures in Camarillo, California