October 2013
KAVX
Avalon Harbor
Santa Catalina Island, CA
The Scheyden Catalina Air Show 2013 was held at the Avalon Harbor, Santa Catalina Island, CA and aircraft operated out of the Avalon Airport KAVX
on October 26 and 27, 2013. This made photography a bit difficult. Walking the tarmac on my breaks did well for static, parked aircraft.
Airborn performing aircraft were somewhat unavailable. But I got a few!
From Coarsegold, I drove to Bakersfield and picked up Ray Firkins. He also recently retired from the FAA, from Bakersfield Tower/TRACON.
We proceeded to dinner, had rooms reserved at Motel 6 in Costa Mesa, then got up early for our 9:00am cruise from Newport Beach
to Avalon. Pre-arranged, we took "The Catalina Flyer". We stayed at The Hermosa Hotel.
The "UNICOM Tower" was set up on the fourth floor of the terminal building at the Avalon "Airport In The Sky".
We operated UNICOM from the balcony and all necessary equipment was supplied. My own equipment enhanced the
operation and it was quite effective.
The pre-briefing is mandatory. Attending personnel include all the performing pilots, the FAA FSDO, the Air Boss (and company), Airport Management,
Unicom, and local police. Procedures were displayed and thoroughly discussed. I was able to explain that we are Unicom Only, NOT a control tower. That limits our
liability big time. I asked for the authority to close the runway. This is something I always want. After the pilot, Unicom is the first to know of a mishap
that affects the safety of the runway. Even a blown tire leaves FOD on the runway, a hazzard for the next arrival. They all understood, but also explained that
the performing aircraft are usually fuel critical. They carry enough fuel to do the job and return to the airport, a weight consideration. It was then explained
that returning aircraft cannot be delayed! The alternate, their "out", was to land in the dirt parallel to the runway if the paved runway was unusable.
When the meeting was over, we were all on the same page. These briefings are essential to safety. We all need to know what will happen, what to expect, and what
to expect of each other. As a result, everyone did what they're trained to do and we had a safe air show!
The scenery on the island is awesome! The ride to the airport showed us that the weather wasn't cooperating.
Low overcast in the Avalon Harbor delayed the show. Unfortunately, some of these photos are through the bus window.
The overcast weather in the Avalon Harbor delayed the show. Most aircraft didn't fly until late morning. Unicom work was slow and uneventful
until the weather cleared up enough. Then things started to happen. Aircraft began to show up. Unicom work became busier and we kept it
safe and uneventful.
The scheduled detarture was 4:30pm so I had some time to enjoy the island. After wandering through the shops and lunch, I spent some time
watching the harbor activity. There's quite a lot to do out here.
The Catalina Flyer has been waiting for us all day. Although a bit cold, the weather was calm as was the surf so it was
quite a pleasant ride. The return ride to the mainland was a bit cold, but uneventful. We passed up a few boats, saw some
jumping dolphins, low flying birds and then the opening to the Newport Bay. Overall, it was a nice ride, a safe Unicom,
airport, and Air Show operation, and overall a great experience with a great group of professionals. I hope to work with
them again some day. Finding the car safe and sound was a sight for sore eyes.
