Blog · Community

Fly-Out Day Trips From Redlands

One of the best things about learning to fly in the Inland Empire is how much is within an hour of Redlands Municipal (KREI). These fly-out day trips from Redlands range from a 15-minute hop to a real cross-country, and each one teaches you something along the way. Distances are straight-line nautical miles from KREI.

Chino (KCNO): two aviation museums, 25 nm west

Chino Airport is home to two aviation museums, the Planes of Fame Air Museum and the Yanks Air Museum, which makes it an easy choice for a morning flight. It's also a towered airport with three runways, so the trip doubles as tower practice.

Chino's tower is open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Get the ATIS on 125.85 before you call. Along the way you'll pass under or near the edges of Ontario's Class C airspace, so plan your route and altitude with the sectional, and consider flight following with SoCal Approach.

Palm Springs (KPSP): the pass and the desert, 35 nm east-southeast

The trip to Palm Springs runs through the San Gorgonio Pass, between San Gorgonio Mountain and San Jacinto Peak, and ends at a towered airline airport with a 10,000-foot runway. The Palm Springs Air Museum sits right next to the airport. Expect wind and turbulence in the pass and heat in the desert in summer, and plan for both.

French Valley (F70): wine country, 31 nm south

French Valley Airport, between Murrieta and Temecula, has a single 6,000-foot runway, 18/36, at 1,350 feet, with a CTAF of 122.8. The Temecula Valley wine country is nearby. The route south passes March Air Reserve Base's Class C airspace, so plan around it or talk to March Approach. Our French Valley guide covers the trip in detail.

Oceanside (KOKB): the coast, 53 nm south-southwest

Oceanside's Bob Maxwell Memorial Airfield sits in the San Luis Rey River valley, a few miles from the beach. Its runway is short, 2,712 feet, and the marine layer often covers the coast in the morning, so plan for both. At 53 nautical miles from Redlands, the trip counts as cross-country time toward a private, commercial or instrument certificate. Our Oceanside guide covers the routing.

Hemet-Ryan (KHMT): fire season up close, 22 nm south-southeast

Hemet-Ryan is a main Cal Fire air attack base. The FAA notes air tanker activity from May through November, with firefighting aircraft flying their own pattern procedures, and glider and ultralight activity on the north side of the airport. It's a short, interesting hop, and a good lesson in sharing a pattern with very different aircraft. The CTAF is 123.0.

Flabob (KRIR): a small-field challenge, 14 nm west-southwest

Flabob, in Jurupa Valley, has a single short, narrow runway, 6/24, 3,190 by 50 feet, and some local procedures worth reading first. The FAA notes a hill rising to 1,340 feet about three-quarters of a mile southeast of the airport. Departures to the south contact Riverside Tower, and after taking off on Runway 24 you turn left 10 degrees and stay north of the riverbed. It's a good place to sharpen short-field technique with an instructor.

Thermal (KTRM): below sea level, 56 nm east-southeast

Jacqueline Cochran Regional, in Thermal at the far end of the Coachella Valley, sits 114 feet below sea level. Its two long runways, 8,500 and 4,995 feet, make it an easy destination, and at 56 nautical miles from Redlands it counts as cross-country time. The CTAF is 123.0.

The high desert, 19 to 33 nm north-northwest

Through the Cajon Pass, Hesperia, Apple Valley and Victorville sit on the high desert at 2,900 to 3,400 feet. The pass is a lesson in terrain and wind, and the airports are a lesson in density altitude on a summer afternoon.

Two that need approval first

Big Bear City (L35), 18 nautical miles northeast at 6,752 feet, and Catalina (KAVX), the "Airport in the Sky," are both memorable destinations, and both demand serious planning: high elevation and mountain winds at Big Bear, and an island runway with no easy alternate at Catalina. In Cornerstone aircraft, both require the office's approval in advance, so talk to us before you plan either one.

Before any day trip

• Get a full weather briefing for the whole route, including the destination's forecast for your return time.
• Check NOTAMs and TFRs, especially in fire season.
• Work out density altitude and runway requirements for the destination.
• Plan fuel with a real reserve.
• Know which airspace you'll cross and who you'll talk to.

Fly them with us

Cornerstone Flight Academy rents a Cessna 172 and a Cessna 150 at Redlands Municipal Airport. The 172 seats four, and the 150 is an economical two-seater for trips with a friend. An instructor can fly any of these with you the first time.

Call or text (909) 330-4748, or visit flycornerstone.com.

Book a $120 intro flight · Aircraft rental and time building · Pilot training at Cornerstone · More from the blog