Saturday: Celebrate half a century of aviation at Paso Robles Airport
Free 50th-anniversary event slated for Sept. 23
– The Paso Robles Municipal Airport will mark its 50th anniversary with a celebratory event featuring static aircraft displays, aviation exhibits, food trucks, beer and wine vendors, and more on Sept. 23. The festivities, free and open to the public, will honor half a century of aviation at the airport.
Situated four miles northeast of downtown Paso Robles in San Luis Obispo County, the public airport is owned by the City of Paso Robles. Covering 1,300 acres, the Paso Robles Municipal Airport has two runways and one helipad.
The airport’s history dates back to its establishment as the Estrella Army Air Field in 1943. While the facility experienced minimal military activity during the war, it paved the way for the area’s aviation advancements. Sherwood Field, located a few miles south, played a prominent role in the early days of aviation in northern San Luis Obispo County.
Pacific Seaboard Air Lines became the first airline to serve Paso Robles, operating daily round-trip flights in 1933. The airline utilized single-engine Bellanca CH-300 aircraft for intrastate travel, covering the Los Angeles – Santa Barbara – Santa Maria – San Luis Obispo – Paso Robles – Monterey – Salinas – San Jose – San Francisco route. Subsequently, Pacific Seaboard shifted its operations to the eastern United States, underwent a name change to Chicago and Southern Air Lines, expanded into a major domestic and international carrier, and ultimately merged with Delta Air Lines in 1953, providing Delta with its initial international routes.
Click here to view the Facebook event page.