KBOI on Wednesday

arnoha

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arnoha
Well, looks like the weather on Wednesday will make for a decent VFR trip from KPAO to KBOI (or possibly KMAN). Anyone have any experience with the airport? Which FBO is preferred?
 
What town is your ultimate destination?

Are you renting a car upon arrival?

How long are you staying?
 
Two destinations, Nampa and Boise. Yep, will be renting a car. I'll be staying till just past Christmas, hoping to head home before the new year. Obviously weather dependent.
 
Well, looks like the weather on Wednesday will make for a decent VFR trip from KPAO to KBOI (or possibly KMAN). Anyone have any experience with the airport? Which FBO is preferred?

I fly into KBOI often and park at Jackson Jet Center as it is the most convenient and has the cheapest fuel although It is a bit of a pain cause you have to taxi to the other side of the field. They will waive fees if you buy gas. I have no experience with the other FBO's or KMAN. I was looking at weather as well and both Tue and Wed look to be VFR.
 
I fly into KBOI often and park at Jackson Jet Center as it is the most convenient and has the cheapest fuel although It is a bit of a pain cause you have to taxi to the other side of the field. They will waive fees if you buy gas. I have no experience with the other FBO's or KMAN. I was looking at weather as well and both Tue and Wed look to be VFR.

Thanks! Do you know what they charge for a 172 in the hangar? I'll need one night in there to warm up before my flight back out.
 
KMAN was the right airport & fbo to me summer before. I'm quite certain KBOI would be fine too.
 
KMAN was the right airport & fbo to me summer before. I'm quite certain KBOI would be fine too.

What was the FBO you used? There only seems to be AvCenter and they seem to concentrate on charters, so they seemed to not be interested in someone like me. But I haven't called them yet. They also have fuel that is surprisingly more expensive than the fuel at BOI. Do you know if the hangar space is readily available?
 
Yep that was it:
https://goo.gl/maps/YgkjfzdP2fH2

see the self serve to the left in this picture.
I didn't ask about hangars; it was summer and they offered me a shade hangar (right side of pic) for some worldly sum like $5/nite.
I'd give em a call; airnav.com or foreflight both have the phone nmbr
 
What was the FBO you used? There only seems to be AvCenter and they seem to concentrate on charters, so they seemed to not be interested in someone like me. But I haven't called them yet. They also have fuel that is surprisingly more expensive than the fuel at BOI. Do you know if the hangar space is readily available?

AvCenter is a full service FBO. Fuel, Instruction, Charter, Maintenance.

I may possibly know of an un-used hangar at KMAN, for you. As of right now, it has been empty for 2 months. Send me a PM.

There is an Enterprise rental car office about 2 miles from the airport, for the rental car at KMAN.

Jackson's in Boise is first class, but reasonably priced. It is a "jet center", so you get great service, nice bathrooms, etc...

AvCenter in Nampa is a "working" FBO, nicer than most FBO's I have visited, but you aren't going to get marble counters, mouthwash in the bathroom, and "free" popcorn.
 
AvCenter is a full service FBO. Fuel, Instruction, Charter, Maintenance.

I may possibly know of an un-used hangar at KMAN, for you. As of right now, it has been empty for 2 months. Send me a PM.

There is an Enterprise rental car office about 2 miles from the airport, for the rental car at KMAN.

Jackson's in Boise is first class, but reasonably priced. It is a "jet center", so you get great service, nice bathrooms, etc...

AvCenter in Nampa is a "working" FBO, nicer than most FBO's I have visited, but you aren't going to get marble counters, mouthwash in the bathroom, and "free" popcorn.

PM sent.

Shiny counters are pretty, but it isn't something that I'm generally going make a decision on. Somewhere warm that can get me the things I need: fuel, hangar, rental car, that's what matters. The Enterprise will deliver to AvCenter? Thanks for all the info!
 
I had to look; surprisingly fuel price is $0.45 cheaper, one place at the big airport
(type in kman)
http://airnav.com/fuel/local.html

Yeah, that seriously surprised me as well. One thing that may be driving that is that it's at a self-service pump that's not close to the FBO that runs it, or so say the notes. I'm guessing only the locals use it regularly. I'm trying to find it in Google Maps and not having any luck. The truck prices aren't particularly different between the airports.

Other thing I've learned so far is that rental cars are about $100/week cheaper at KBOI as well.
 
Thanks! Do you know what they charge for a 172 in the hangar? I'll need one night in there to warm up before my flight back out.

no idea what they would charge. Give them a ring. I'd be surprised if temps would get below 20-25 right now. Not to crazy
 
Yeah, that seriously surprised me as well. One thing that may be driving that is that it's at a self-service pump that's not close to the FBO that runs it, or so say the notes. I'm guessing only the locals use it regularly. I'm trying to find it in Google Maps and not having any luck. The truck prices aren't particularly different between the airports.

Other thing I've learned so far is that rental cars are about $100/week cheaper at KBOI as well.

Oh and have a current taxi diagram readily available. It can be confusing where that fuel pump is on the southwest corner of the field. And many more options for car rentals. I'd check pricing at the main terminal as well as the FBO at KBOI. It's a 5 minute walk from the FBO.
 
I belong to a club at KMAN and the folks at the Av center FBO are great simple airport no tower quick and easy. There are two fuel stations one at the FBO office or one on the east side. The self serve fuel prices should be less than Boise they also do full serve. Shade hanger no problem not sure about indoor.

Another option Keul Caldwell. I keep my plane there and my hanger is across from the A&P and instructor. He has hanger space courtesy car to rent cheap and will get you a fuel discount. Absolutely nothing fancy but a great guy with lots of stories and he has the key to my hanger if you want kick back have a free beer and relax on the couch while watching some TV.

Pm me and I'll send you his number.
 
I belong to a club at KMAN and the folks at the Av center FBO are great simple airport no tower quick and easy. There are two fuel stations one at the FBO office or one on the east side. The self serve fuel prices should be less than Boise they also do full serve. Shade hanger no problem not sure about indoor.

Another option Keul Caldwell. I keep my plane there and my hanger is across from the A&P and instructor. He has hanger space courtesy car to rent cheap and will get you a fuel discount. Absolutely nothing fancy but a great guy with lots of stories and he has the key to my hanger if you want kick back have a free beer and relax on the couch while watching some TV.

Pm me and I'll send you his number.

Shockingly, the self-serve fuel prices are reported at $0.45 cheaper at KBOI, though the fuel off the truck is $0.75 more expensive.

Thank you for the generosity! That's the third generous offer I've had in one afternoon of chatting on this thread from basically complete strangers. Maybe I'll like Idaho. :) (Of course, I am going to see my mother-in-law for Christmas. Insert requisite joke here...)
 
Wow, looks like this is actually going to happen. KPAO to KRTS for fuel. Then on to KMAN. Thanks everyone.
 
Plane and family made it to a snowy Nampa Airport just as the sun was setting. Much thanks for all for the suggests. Eventual route was KPAO KRDD KMAN, as an 8000' layer kept me out of the Sierras.

2016-12-22.jpeg
 
@arnoha I was as far north as Modesto yesterday = it was clear and million all the way to Sacramento - could not see over the horizon to the north though!
 
The press is so amazingly bad- the conclusory reporting on everything -as if they are the only arbiters of truth on the planet/ / /

"The police smelled marijuana.' Sure they did. They got ****ed off having to wait and wanted an excuse to search a federal facility without a warrant to see what they could find because they got bored and angry being ignored- because after all - they are the police. Some guy just wandered into the control tower at BOI airport and smoked marijuana in the lobby? There ARE likely security cameras . . .
 
Plane and family made it to a snowy Nampa Airport just as the sun was setting. Much thanks for all for the suggests. Eventual route was KPAO KRDD KMAN, as an 8000' layer kept me out of the Sierras.

View attachment 50022

Welcome to Nampa, I think they have a pretty decent FBO. I will send you a PM, if you need anything let me know. I was out there this morning.

Brian
CFIIG/ASEL
 
@arnoha I was as far north as Modesto yesterday = it was clear and million all the way to Sacramento - could not see over the horizon to the north though!

The layer was in the Reno and Carson valleys. The west side of the mountain was clear, but I would have had to go over the top of the layer VFR and hope Stead didn't have a ceiling. And that the bottoms didn't ramp up and push me into hypoxia. I was fine at 9500', but my wife was getting a headache and lightheaded. Judging from the pulse/ox readings, I was going to start getting a bit less sharp in another 1000'. I should have been carrying O2, but went with survival gear instead. The stretch between Reno and Boise basically has nothing anywhere close by.

Welcome to Nampa, I think they have a pretty decent FBO. I will send you a PM, if you need anything let me know. I was out there this morning.

Heh! I might have called on you if two things happened: I end up in Idaho past the end of the year due to weather and if I hadn't just barely gotten my BFR in before I left. Weather in the Bay Area hasn't been great for flying and I was left with the possibility that, if I left and couldn't return in time, I'd need an emergency BFR to be legal.

And you're the fourth complete stranger to offer stuff. I've already taken one member up on an offer and found that it was utterly genuine and awesome. The plane is in a hangar, which it needs since I have no winterization at all on the aircraft. I figured I'd be paying a ton to get it in an FBO hangar, but I've been saved from that.

On our last visit to Nampa we got treated to an impromptu air show by one of the P-40s from the Warhawk Museum.

That's great! I saw the museum there. Is it a good place to go? (I'm guessing they won't be flying in this weather!)


I barely made it into Nampa, in fact. Due to a brain fart that just shouldn't have happened...I mentally went the wrong way with the time change. Mentally, I was thinking I had two hours more sun than I actually did. During lunch in Redding, a text from @JoseCuervo clued me in that I was quite mistaken. I got in in the nick of time: not yet after dark, but with the cooling air, the visibility dropped from basically unlimited when I first got ADS-B weather a half hour out to 4 nm when I landed. That's not particularly tight yet, but it was closing fast. Listening to the miles drop off the minute weather visibility as I flew in the last 20 minutes was actually a bit nerve-wracking. (The picture I posted is deceiving...it was much mistier than the picture shows.)

In the end, though, I had a nice, soft landing on the white, snow-dusted (1/2 inch or so) runway. Never landed on snow before. I was surprised to find I actually had decent braking action. I think it was due to the cold: the snow was not melting under the tires. Same thing I've found out on the road. I'm used to driving around Tahoe in the snow and traction is much better right now here. But it's about 10 degrees colder here than it is typically when I'm in Tahoe. The no-chain, no-stud, FWD rental Kia Soul does great on the roads. (As long as there's no ice. Ice is always bad.)
 
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