Being an aviation geek, I have seen aircraft from over a century of flight take to the skies. And being a Cali boy means I don’t have to go too far to see these aircraft. Read on and I’ll share with you some of the places around California where you can see, learn about, and in some cases touch the aircraft of the past and present, and where you can visit the future of aerospace.
We are decades removed from the 50’s and 60’s, known as the Jet Age and The Golden Age of Flying. (Things have sure changed since then.) We are nearly a century removed from the 1920s and 1930s, the so-called Golden Age of Flight. But, the release (finally) of Top Gun: Maverick coupled with the upcoming 75th anniversary this October of the breaking of the sound barrier, have put aviation back in the spotlight. Top Gun: Maverick has also reignited an interest in the real Top Gun pilots.
A Short History of Aviation in California
My home state of California is an indelible part of the history of aviation, a story that stretches way back to 1910. That year, Carson, California, hosted The Great Air Meet, the country’s first air show. An estimated 250,000 people turned out to watch the 10-day event.
Since then, the aerospace industry in California has really taken off. At its peak during WWII, somewhere in the neighborhood of two million people were employed in the aerospace field in Los Angeles alone. Southern California was home to fifteen of the twenty-five largest aerospace companies in the U.S. Aerospace companies like Lockheed, Hughes, Douglas Aircraft, Northrop, SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, Scaled Composites, Cal Tech, JPL, Boeing, Rockwell, North American, RAND, and others have called California home. Some are still here. They were based mostly in Southern California cities: Santa Monica, Burbank, Long Beach, Palmdale, San Diego, Torrance, El Segundo, Downey, Huntington Beach, Riverside, Pasadena, Edwards, Los Angeles. Speaking of Los Angeles, aviator Amelia Earhart was a Los Angeles resident.
The state of California has been and continues to be an integral and indispensable part of the storied past, exciting present, and limitless future of aviation and aerospace. Hollywood agrees, as evidenced by films like The Right Stuff, Top Gun, and the aforementioned Top Gun: Maverick. Parts of all three movies were filmed in California. All three movies are highly regarded for the realism in their extraordinary flying scenes.
Whether you are partial to mono-planes, bi-planes, tri-planes, prop planes, jets, helicopters, airplanes, seaplanes, or spaceplanes, you have to agree that California does have the right stuff when it comes to aviation and aerospace.
Edwards Air Force Base
Located in the high desert of California, aviation buffs know all about Edwards Air Force Base. The venerable base is where countless aircraft of all types were tested, and numerous speed, payload, and altitude records were frequently set and broken. Every aircraft in the U.S. Air Force’s inventory since WWII and almost every U.S. military aircraft since the 50’s was developed and/or tested at Edwards. The Flying Wing and its successors, XP-59A Airacomet, X-1 and most of the X-Series planes, the Century Series fighters, SR-71 Blackbird, X-15, XB-70 Valkyrie, B-1B Lancer, B-2 Spirit, F-117 Nighthawk, Space Shuttle, to name but a few, all made history here.
Brigadier General Charles “Chuck” Yeager, who passed away December 7, 2020, at the age of 97, is known as the first man to break the sound barrier. Chuck Yeager accomplished this feat at Edwards on October 14, 1947 in the Bell X-1.
Much of The Right Stuff, which is based on Tom Wolfe’s book of the same name, was filmed at Edwards. Did you know that Yeager himself, who was portrayed by Sam Shepard in the movie, actually made a cameo appearance in the film as a bartender?
Air Shows
The best place to see a lot of different aircraft take to the skies in one place is at an air show. Everything from aerobatic planes to warbirds to helos to today’s frontline fighters fly right overhead. On the ground, you’ll find even more aircraft on static display. It’s also where you can see aerial demonstration teams the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds and the U.S. Navy Blue Angels perform. Here are some of the air shows in California you should check out:
✈ NAF El Centro Air Show – Usually held mid-March
✈ Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC) Point Mugu Air Show – Usually held mid-March
✈ March Field Air & Space Expo – Usually held in April
✈ Beale AFB Air & Space Expo – Usually held in May
✈ Travis Air Force Base Air Show – Fairfield – Usually held in May
✈ California Capitol Air Show – Near Sacramento – Usually held late September or early October
✈ MCAS Miramar – Usually held late September or early October. Said to be the largest military air show in the U.S.
✈ California International Air Show – Salinas – Usually held early October
✈ Pacific Airshow – Huntington Beach – Usually held early October. Relatively new to the air show circuit but rapidly gaining in popularity. Show takes place above the shoreline
✈ San Francisco Fleet Week – Usually held late September/early October. Show takes place over the waterfront between Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge
✈ Aerospace Valley Air Show – Edwards AFB – Usually held Mid-October. The name of the event changes so it is best to look up Edwards Air Force Base Air Show for the latest information. This is one of the biggest and most diverse air shows you’ll find
✈ Central Coast Air Fest – Santa Maria – Usually held mid-October
✈ Aviation Nation – Nellis AFB – Usually held early/mid-November. Yes, I know. Nellis is in Nevada. But it’s only a few hours’ drive from So Cal. Definitely worth the trip to see the aircraft they have flying there and to get shots like the one above
Airshow Network has a more complete list of shows in California, across the U.S., and Canada.
Aviation Museums
Museums are another good place to see aircraft. The exhibits give you a chance to get up close and personal with airplanes and spacecraft. Below are a few of the aviation museums in California:
✈ Aerospace Museum of California – McClellan Park, just northeast of Sacramento
✈ Aerospace Walk of Honor and Boeing Plaza – Lancaster – Walk of Honor stretches several blocks along Lancaster Blvd. Features murals, monuments, and plaques honoring history-making aviators
✈ Air Force Flight Test Museum – Edwards Air Force Base – Currently open only to those with base access. A new museum is under construction, due to open in 2025. The new museum is slated to be sited outside the base’s gates and open to the public
✈ Blackbird Airpark – Palmdale – An annex of the Air Force Flight Test Center – The only place in the world where an SR-71, an A-12, and a U-2 are displayed in the same location
✈ California Science Center – Los Angeles – Air and space exhibits include a DC-8, T-38 Talon, the only surviving F-20 Tigershark, the only A-12 trainer ever built, Space Shuttle Endeavor, and original and replica spacecraft
✈ Castle Air Museum – Atwater – Large display of aircraft including one of only four surviving B-36 Peacemakers
✈ Joe Davies Heritage Airpark – Palmdale – Static displays of more than 20 aircraft including one of the two Shuttle Carrier Aircraft
✈ March Air Field Museum – Riverside – Large display of aircraft, Firebase Romeo Charlie replica of a Vietnam-era Forward Operating Location, a radio room, and tens of thousands of artifacts. Make sure you check out the Innovation Through Conflict: Mileposts in the Evolution of Military Aviation exhibit in the main building featuring displays dedicated to the Women’s Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs), Tuskegee Airmen, Curtis LeMay, Jimmy Doolittle and more. Uniforms, letters, notes, plaques, issued equipment, and other artifacts, etc., give a rare insight into these periods in aviation history
✈ Mojave Air & Space Port – Mojave – Virgin Galactic, Stratolaunch Systems, and Scaled Composites operate here. Generally not open to the public but the monthly Plane Crazy Saturdays events do allow limited access. A virtual driving tour guides you around the airport where you can see the massive civilian aircraft boneyard
✈ Planes of Fame Air Museum – Chino – Collection includes more than 150 aircraft, many in flying condition. Replica of the Bell X-2, astonishing number of models displayed in cases in multiple hangars, one of the three surviving D-558-II Skyrockets, and a small boneyard. Immense collection of aviation-related books and magazines. Beautiful entryway and gift shop
✈ The Proud Bird – Next to LAX – Aviation exhibits and memorabilia inside the venue. Aircraft on display outside. Great place for planespotting
✈ San Diego Air & Space Museum – San Diego – Dozens of air and spacecraft on display. A YF2Y-1 Sea Dart is mounted on a pedestal outside the museum. This supersonic jet that takes off and lands on water is one of only five built. Accompanying it is an A-12. Check out their webpages for detailed descriptions of each item on display, and their YouTube page for some rare archival aviation footage
✈ Travis Air Force Base Aviation Museum – Travis Air Force Base – Numerous exhibits stretching from WWII, though the Cold War, and into the era of space flight. On-site library holds thousands of books on aviation and military history
✈ USS Midway Museum – San Diego – Museum on the USS Midway aircraft carrier. Features aircraft that were flown off carriers like the USS Midway, above and below deck tours, exhibits, a theater, flight simulators, and programs for kids
✈ Winged Flight Test Museum – Edwards Air Force Base – Under construction with plans to open in 2024
✈ Yanks Air Museum – Chino – Jam-packed with well over 100 aircraft. Beautifully restored cars from the same era as the planes they are parked next to. Check out the restoration hangar and the boneyard. Small carnival-type rides and games to keep the kids entertained
Click the link for a more complete list of California’s aviation museums.
Aviation in Film
There are countless movies, newsreels, and documentaries related to aviation and aerospace in general. No doubt you’ve seen more than a few of them. Below is a list of some of the classics. All feature some of the best flying sequences you’ll see on film.
✈ Midway
✈ The Right Stuff – This link has a list of aircraft featured in The Right Stuff. So does this fan site
✈ Top Gun – This link has a list of aircraft featured in Top Gun
✈ Top Gun: Maverick – This link has a list of aircraft featured in Top Gun: Maverick
You can find a multitude of episodes from the old Discovery Channel series “Wings”, “Great Planes”, and “Wings of the Red Star” on YouTube.
Aviation and aerospace have certainly come a long way. It took forty-three years to progress from Orville and Wilbur’s first airplane flight in 1903 to Yeager’s momentous 1947 flight that shattered the sound barrier. Just thirteen years later, 1961 saw the first man launched into space. Eight years after that, the first man walked on the moon.
As I said earlier, California has been and continues to be a vital part of the past, present, and future of aviation and aerospace. Now that you know where to go, grab your camera and capture some of the air and spacecraft that have cemented California’s place in the annals of aviation. Maybe I’ll see you out there.
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