Buttonwillow CA
 

So Cal guys...

The Buttonwillow facility....is it available for open use at any time? I need a place to test fly a airplane and this looks to be a great spot for this.

Please advise on usage and rules that might apply.

Thanks!

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

The Willow belongs to BARKS it is a membership to fly here at the Willow,( AMA) Joe C!!

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

huh?

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

The field is where the club "BARKS" (Bakersfield Airplane Radio Control Society) flys. You have to be a member of there club to fly there. It is a AMA sanctioned field so to speak so AMA rules apply. They just happen to use a paved runway of an old airport as the field. Does that clear things up?

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

It is an AMA field, run by the BARKS club.

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

You need a key for the gate and need to be either a member or a guest of a member.. Oh yeah, and a 2 way radio in order to interact with full size traffic...

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

On the way out of Nevada to CA you're going to pass a number of dry lakes including a couple on the way to Baker, like Silurian DL. I know a guy who drove up from LA to test fly a jet there. Why not use one of them? I fly at Rabbit DL all the time, and, besides being a great place to fly, it's much more forgiving if you have problems and it's a lot closer to you than Buttonwillow. Rabbit DL in Lucerne Valley is open to anyone, so you can try it.

They didn't mention that if you want to fly as a guest at BW, you need to get a member who has a key to the gate and the general aviation Unicom radio to be there too.

(Oops, Dougie beat me to the radio bit!)

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

Actually Rabbit DL is 60 miles further and 2 hours longer according to Google Maps but if you are flying something out of the AMA rules bracket then the extra 2 1/2 hours would be worth it.

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

As the boys mentioned, Buttonwillow is an active, full-scale airport. When I say active I mean its open for full-scales at any time....but its pretty infrequent. You must have a two-way radio to listen to Unicom for approaching traffic......when I'm there I usually get the radio (go figure) but when someone is in-bound I just advise that there are high speed model aircraft in the air and will advise when they're down. Its not a problem.....the model and full-scale guys all understand and its works well for both.

Its identifier is L62....you can see all the particulars [link=http://airnav.com/airport/L62]here[/link].

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

http://www.modelaircraft.org/clubdetails.aspx?club=115

Go here to get info. on the club, the membership is usually $20.00 for the year we re-join the club every year as a way to say thank you even if we fly only once on that year, they are such a nice bunch of guys.

If want to fly there I suggest to get in contact with a memeber ( The Southern gang ) to see if they are coing or want to fly with you.

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

I'll send in my membership fee to support the club!:D
Mario

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

as the other members mentioned above, Buttonwillow L62 is available
to the members of BARKS to fly at. we have a lease with the Kern County
airports to do so. I currently am the secretary for the club.

if you plan on coming over, let me know. I can get you info to join.

the airport is also used by the CHP, and occasionally the SO, student
pilots, crop dusters, and the occasional drug runners[X(].

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

His info indicates he's in Pahrump, NV - is that right or am I missing something.? Otherwise I'd be interested in the shortcut.

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

OK, thanks for the info. I mistakenly thought it was an abandoned airstrip, my bad. I Will contact the club as required to get escort and or join if thats what it takes. As far as unicom and full scale ops..I have that covered no problem. I have a radio ready to go.

Thanks again for all the info.

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

just curious, but what do you need to test fly that can only be done at Buttonwillow? Just remember, it is an AMA field and rules apply. It just seems a little far to travel if you just need to test fly a plane. I am the turbine safety officer for the club so if you are flying a jet you should probably give me a call.
831-207-9539 cell

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

Yeah, thats what I am assuming. I just went to google maps and pulled up some driving directions to both locations.

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

OK, to clear it up...

The aircraft is well within AMA rules for turbine operations. I wanted to fly at BW so I would not have to worry about runway length. The jet I will be testing has a been rumored not to stop flying and if you don't nail the approach you will quickly run out of runway. Therefore I would like the cushion of a long runway on the first flights.

Not looking to test some 100 pound rule breaker, just looking for a little wiggle room.

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

Understandable, but what is the jet your looking to test fly. Joe C!!

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

Collectively, the jet guys who fly at the Willow have flown hundreds of types/manufacturers of turbine models. Perhaps one of us has experience with the jet in question and could advise / assist you so as to increase the chances that the maiden goes successfully.

Gordon

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

Good post Gordon. Joe C!!

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

And yes, I live in Pahrump....rual area west of Vegas. After 30 years in that hole I decided to move. Now I have no crime, no traffic, no crime, lots of propery, no crime.....well you get the point.

As far as travel, I drive 140 miles round trip to go fly on the weekend (I fly in Vegas at the SilverBowl) so distance is nothing to me. I have an option of a private airport in Napa Valley that I could and now based on the complications with BW will most likely use for the test flying.

I know it may sound stupid to some of you that I would travel that far to have ideal conditions to test, but I have a lot of time and money invested...it would be stupid to loose it because I could not make a drive.

All I know is I ALWAYS land hot on a new airplane and with that in mind I will need the extra room.

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

The Aircraft is a SM MB339. Rhino for power. Word I get fro am experienced pilot on this type is they just will not quit flying and you have to nail the glide-slope/approach or forget it and go around.

I would rather have the room to get it figured out, than to push it at my local field. If any of you have flown in Vegas you know that our run-off is not good and you can expect damage if you do.

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

Last month I was flying back from Paso in amphib husky and decided to hop over the mountains and show my gf where I sometimes fly model jets.So we proceed to land and some locals observing that we are a floatplane and not realizing we also have wheels assume that we are either going to land in the aquaduct or that landing is going to be interesting.So they drive up and cant speak a word of english...anyway gf commented the place was pretty godforsaken (I guess she wont be joining me for next caljets :D:D:D) I was prob only fullscale operation all month...no fbo...fuel...faciltys of anykind to draw a lot of traffic....so even handheld would probably be just a formality...and runway is very long ...just talk to the clubmembers...shoud not be any "complication" and a heck of a lot closer for you than Napa!!!! kpc

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

Ok, I went and looked at that and I think you reversed them.

Anyway, we have probably well over a 1/2 mile of lakebed useable for a runway and lots of area for forgiveness for aiplanes in trouble. Not that many there during the week. Come on down.

RE: Buttonwillow CA
 

I watched Dave Presta test fly an SM MB339 from the Tracy Skyliners field (about 800 ft of asphalt) a few months ago. He should be able to give you some good insight into it's flying characteristics.

I'm sure that if you do want to come out to Buttonwillow to do the maiden, if he's available he'd be happy to help in any way you need.

Gordon