Flying to an unattended airport 2.5 miles from the town, how to get there?

R

RealMatt

Filing Flight Plan
Joined
Jun 13, 2013
Messages
3
Display Name
Display name:
Matt
I seem to have this issue a lot. My wife and I like to check out various small towns, but typically the airports are a few miles away from any sort of civilization. It's close enough where we can walk, but long enough where the walk is somewhat annoying. Sometimes we luck out with courtesy cars / courtesy bikes, but our next flight is to a completely unattended airport.

I can't exactly fit a bike in a 172. Does anyone else have something they use to get around that they can carry with them in a small plane?

I was thinking of getting some of these:
717%2BdVaRlIL._SY500_.jpg


but my wife thinks they look really stupid (and I tend to agree). Rollerblades also crossed my mind.

What do the rest of you do?
 
I was thinking of bringing a longboard(think fast skateboard). Never thought of a little scooter and the folding bikes are expensive and pretty big.
 
Full size mountain bike in the Comanche.
 
Taxi?

Another option. Are you going to a restaurant? Call and ask if they will send someone out for you. At X01 in FL, the locals will come out to the airport to pick up customers for a tip.
 
Dude, 2.5 miles is walking distance. I regularly hoof it five miles from the airport.

If I have all day. If it's a business trip I call ahead for Enterprise to leave me a car. But I'm not paying for it in that instance.
 
alfadog said:
Taxi?

Another option. Are you going to a restaurant? Call and ask if they will send someone out for you. At X01 in FL, the locals will come out to the airport to pick up customers for a tip.
Click to expand...

Now that is something I hadn't thought of. Thanks.
 
We purchased two Citizens folding bikes. Fairly cheap at $175.
Both fit in the 172.
30lbs each and fold up 31x22x14
Not the best, but gets us around the airports and we take the, camping and ride around campgrounds.
 
Folding bikes, bikes with removable wheels and remove the back seat, taxi, walk, call someone, land elsewhere.

Having used scooters like that I can't say they are an attractive alternative to walking in many cases.
 
When you land at an unattended airport you are instantly a homeless person. But almost always, there is way into town. Call a restaurant, call a hotel (if you are spending the night), hitch a ride with a local pilot, look around for the keys to the courtesy car, or walk.

I planned on landing at Shamrock, TX, airport, which is very unattended and 5 miles outside the town. I called three of the hotels to ask if they would pick me up. "We do not provide that service" at the first two. Then the third one, answered by a lady with an India accent said, "My son can come for you."

And he did. And drove me back the next morning.

I stayed at that hotel, and and then in my walk around town I walked into the one that had turned me down. Four workers (front desk, maintenance worker, and "security") were sitting around shooting the breeze with nothing to do.
 
Personally I have had great luck by calling the local sheriff/police etc and explaining my position. (Most) LEO's are really good people and know a person flying into a community in an aircraft usually has spare money to spend and they want as much revenue dropped in their small town as possible... 99% of the time they would either pick me/us up or call around and have a farmer/rancher/wife/kid etc transport us into their town..... YMMV...

The VAST majority of smal town people are really friendly ya know...:yes:
 
RealMatt said:
I seem to have this issue a lot. My wife and I like to check out various small towns, but typically the airports are a few miles away from any sort of civilization. It's close enough where we can walk, but long enough where the walk is somewhat annoying. Sometimes we luck out with courtesy cars / courtesy bikes, but our next flight is to a completely unattended airport.

I can't exactly fit a bike in a 172. Does anyone else have something they use to get around that they can carry with them in a small plane?

I was thinking of getting some of these:
717%2BdVaRlIL._SY500_.jpg


but my wife thinks they look really stupid (and I tend to agree). Rollerblades also crossed my mind.

What do the rest of you do?
Click to expand...
The kid kick scooters suck, the better ones work well. http://www.nycewheels.com/electric-scooter-kick-scooter.html
Places in Europe it is common for adults to use the things. Not just a suburban driveway kids toy, of course in america people will think you are poor/retarded. Easy to carry and cheap compared to folding bicycles.
 
We had someone come into our airport (KTDZ) and had reservations for a hotel about 4 miles up the road. I asked "Where you going?" he said "Sleep Inn on Woodville" I said "I'll drop you off if you want and then tomorrow you can see about getting a ride back here" he accepted.

Was in a small town and one of the locals saw me land and they said "Going into town for dinner?" I said "Yes sir" He said "I'll give you a ride into town" I did have to walk back to the plane afterwards...but small airports are in communities so walking isn't too hideous.
 
Two weeks ago I flew into a small place in Kentucky. No FBO, the only contact listed was the chair of the airport board. Emailed him and asked whether there is a cab service in town. He told me that there wasn't, but that he would monitor CTAF from his office in town and give me a ride to wherever I had to go. When I rolled out, a pickup pulled onto the ramp and he did give me a ride to my relatives house. Can't beat that.

So if you really have to go somewhere (and you are not going there for entertainment), call whoever is listed as the airport manager in the FAA master record. In those small places, they are usually dedicated to the success of the airport and can point you towards some way to get transportation. Sometimes there is no licensed cab service available, but even in the most rural of communities there is someone who does the local dialysis runs. Now if an airport is run by the state transportation department or the state-parks superintendent, that manager number may be useless.

Some place in SD used to say 'call city police for fuel or transportation'. Airport manager / snow-plow driver is also the local constable and you get your ride into town in either a snowplow or his GMC Jimmy. In Gwinner,ND, the airport has a in-house phone of the local construction equipment plant in the little terminal. When you pick up the phone, you are connected to switchboard during the day and the 'watch-man' at night. Nothing else really to visit in town anyway ;-) .
 
I have a full-sized Dahon folding bike, which I bought new. It's the best bike I've ever had.
 
Razors are ultra cool, especially the pro model but, using them is more dangerous than flying. Users don't call pea sized pebbles under the front wheels "death-stones" for nothing....

RealMatt said:
I seem to have this issue a lot. My wife and I like to check out various small towns, but typically the airports are a few miles away from any sort of civilization. It's close enough where we can walk, but long enough where the walk is somewhat annoying. Sometimes we luck out with courtesy cars / courtesy bikes, but our next flight is to a completely unattended airport.

I can't exactly fit a bike in a 172. Does anyone else have something they use to get around that they can carry with them in a small plane?

I was thinking of getting some of these:
717%2BdVaRlIL._SY500_.jpg


but my wife thinks they look really stupid (and I tend to agree). Rollerblades also crossed my mind.

What do the rest of you do?
Click to expand...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top