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