Portland area airport recommendations

In article ,
Squirrel wrote:
My main requirement is that public transportation be available from
the airport to downtown.

The MAX goes directly to PDX now so you can ride the train downtown.
I'm not sure what the logistics are like to get from Flightcraft
to the terminal area and MAX access. I don't know what the fees are
like, but I balk at the cost of parking my *car* there.

TTD is very close to PDX (in a cutout of the class C) and is much
closer to downtown than HIO. There are no landing fees there.
Probably a bus or short cab ride downtown.

HIO is farther out and no real advantage over TTD unless you really
want to avoid Portland's airspace. If you're coming from the Seattle
area it's a little easier to get to due to the arrangement of SEA's
surface area and some restricted areas between PDX and SEA. I'd
rather spend the extra time flying than driving, though.

--
Ben Jackson

http://www.ben.com/

Hmm. HIO is only what, half a mile? from the Fair-Complex Max
station, adjacent to the airport. That's only 20-30 minutes to
downtown for $1.25. The only practical alternative is actually
Pearson.

Don

On Tue, 12 Aug 2003 04:00:59 GMT, (Ben Jackson) wrote:

In article ,
Squirrel wrote:
My main requirement is that public transportation be available from
the airport to downtown.

The MAX goes directly to PDX now so you can ride the train downtown.
I'm not sure what the logistics are like to get from Flightcraft
to the terminal area and MAX access. I don't know what the fees are
like, but I balk at the cost of parking my *car* there.

TTD is very close to PDX (in a cutout of the class C) and is much
closer to downtown than HIO. There are no landing fees there.
Probably a bus or short cab ride downtown.

HIO is farther out and no real advantage over TTD unless you really
want to avoid Portland's airspace. If you're coming from the Seattle
area it's a little easier to get to due to the arrangement of SEA's
surface area and some restricted areas between PDX and SEA. I'd
rather spend the extra time flying than driving, though.

On Tue, 12 Aug 2003 04:00:59 GMT, (Ben Jackson) wrote:

In article ,
Squirrel wrote:
My main requirement is that public transportation be available from
the airport to downtown.

The MAX goes directly to PDX now so you can ride the train downtown.
I'm not sure what the logistics are like to get from Flightcraft
to the terminal area and MAX access. I don't know what the fees are
like, but I balk at the cost of parking my *car* there.

Landing and parking fees are, I think, $10/day, though it might be
that the landing fee is $6 and the parking fee at Flightcraft is
$10/day. Buying gas might mitigate that.

TTD is very close to PDX (in a cutout of the class C) and is much
closer to downtown than HIO. There are no landing fees there.
Probably a bus or short cab ride downtown.

TTD is *well* out of town, with no bus service to the airport that I
know of, and no convenient public transportation downtown.

HIO is farther out and no real advantage over TTD unless you really
want to avoid Portland's airspace.

Actually, HIO is attached to a vibrant bedroom community of Portland,
and, like PDX, is on the MAX line. It's been on a MAX line for much
longer than PDX.

Your other choices (people forget Portland's a border town) a VUO
(Pearson Field) in Vancouver, which will be close to bus lines but not
much else. They might have a courtesy car, I'm not sure, but calling a
cab there is a no-brainer and there's a nice antique aircraft museum
on the field, right next to the Fort Vancouver national monument,
which is interesting to go through.

And you still have Evergreen Field (59S), where the tie-downs are
nearly free for up to two weeks, there are about six bazillion
midrange restaurants close by, it *is* on buslines that can connect
you to downtown Portland, and there's a Phoenix Inn underneath the
crosswind leg for runway 28. And it's still open! Yes! Still open!
Complete with airport rats judging the landings!

Farther out, you'll have Scappoose, with fuel and tiedowns,
Portland-Mulino, with not much, and Aurora State, which is a bigtime
training airport (IFR and everything!) with good prices on avgas, but
is halfway to Salem.

If your main requirement is public transportation to downtown, tho, I
recommend HIO for you, with PDX as the more expensive backup. No
landing fees at HIO for light airplanes, but there are probably
tiedown fees. Choose your FBO with care.

Rob

"Robert Perkins" wrote in message

My main requirement is that public transportation be available from
the airport to downtown.

PDX charges a landing fee but has immediate access to downtown via buses or
the MAX rail line with a single switchover for $1.25.

Hillsboro has no landing fee, is an excellent field and has immediate public
transit right outside the airport.

Troutdale has no landing fee but you'd need to take cab or walk a mile or so
to Troutdale to catch the bus.
Of the three, I'd recommend Hillsboro unless somebody else is picking up
your landing fee.

And you still have Evergreen Field (59S), where the tie-downs are
nearly free for up to two weeks, there are about six bazillion
midrange restaurants close by, it *is* on buslines that can connect
you to downtown Portland,

That's the smallest of the fields. Most of the traffic uses the grass
strip, doesn't it? Used to eat lunch across the street and watch the
planes come in right over the tops of the apartment and over the
intersection. If I was renting an apartment in the area, that's where I'd
live just for the free airshow.

-c

I'd definitely go for PDX.
Nice FBO, reasonable landing fees, and the FBO guys can give you a
ride to the public transportations leaving from the main terminal.
Have fun.

Ciao


Andrea W. GUAGLIO
PP-ASEL/ASES
Milan, ITALY



On 11 Aug 2003 20:48:55 -0700, (Squirrel)
wrote:

I'm planning a trip to fly from Seattle to Portland and wanted to get
opinions on what airport to fly into.

My main requirement is that public transportation be available from
the airport to downtown. The flight will be VFR so availability of
instrument approaches is not an issue. I'll be leaving the airplane at
the aiport for 2 nights.

Looking at the sectional I see:
Hillsboro (HIO)
Portland International (PDX)
Troutdale (TTD)

What would you recommend in terms of convenience, GA friendliness,
access to public transportation, and landing/parking fees?

Thanks, SM