Fairfield Travis Air Base (SUU/KSUU) was opened in 1942 and is the gateway to the Pacific for the USAF hosting the biggest AMC wing (60th Air mobility wing) with dozens of C5s, C17s and KC10s. In addition to these local movements you can regularly see some special US military movements like E3s, E6s, P8s or Herc C130s as well as foreign C17s or similar. Furthermore there are also some civil cargo airplanes flying for the USAF like National, Atlas Air or Kalitta.

There is no schedule and there’s no guarantee that you’ll get a lot of planes. There’s been days where you get 4 planes in 6 hours and there’s been days where you can get gotten 17 planes in 6 hours. A good expectation is 1.5 planes/hour. In general, Tuesdays and Thursdays are the best for spotting planes working training sorties (Team Travis, Beale, March, McChord, High Rollers, etc). These are the planes that work a pattern. Anything flying under a REACH callsign will not do pattern work (although they will conduct tactical descents and missed approaches under certain conditions.

But in general, there is no specific day of heightened air mobility command (AMC) traffic. AMC traffic is anything flying under callsign “REACH”. Those are sporratic. However, if an aircraft carrier is deploying or a unit is deploying, there may be increased AMC traffic. If there is an AMC flight with an “E” in the callsign, it is a medevac flight.

Listen to ATC and monitor ADS-B to know what’s going on. Besides civilian freighters, there’s no schedule and even the civilian freighters rarely follow the published schedule. Approach and tower can get cluttered with GA traffic. Note that if a plane is cleared TACAN 3L, sidestep 3R (or circle to land 3R) means the plane will land/touch and go on 3R so position for 3R!

Written by Severin Hackenberger in cooperation with Taylor Kim and Jordan Louie. Last Update: 2022

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Movements
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Weather
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Airport Information
Runways
03L/21R	11.000ft (3353m)
03R/21L	10.995ft (3351m)
Spotting Information
Ladder	May be useful at spot 1 but we do not recommend to use one!
Car/Public Transport	Car needed 100%. No chance without! Also important as hide out and for shadow!
Drinks/Food	There is a walmart in the west close to the base’s entrance, otherwise take everything with you!
Hotels	There are no hotels close to the base.
Season	Summer is hot and hazy, so we rather recommend september till march for spotting here – at least for spot 1.
Security	Remember that this is a USAF air base! Always try to keep a low profile, stay away from the fence! Do not use ladders at all and stow your cameras as long as possible. In addition, always keep an ID with you in case you are getting checked: stay friendly, simply explain what you do here and cooperate… Mostly if you just say you are watching planes (and try to not have your camera next to you), they will leave you alone and tell you not to make any pictures. But sometimes they do also run license plate checks, wanna see the pictures on your SD or they will even make you delete shots with ground in them, so plan on either having throwaway shots or download shots to another device while spotting to be safe.
Runway Usage
General Info	Check winds before going out. In general, winds in the morning are calm, so 21’s will be in use. Also if winds are calm, planes will depart in the direction that is most convinient. Listen to clearance to know what runway will be used for departure. If winds are strong and in the direction for 3’s, the switch will happen mid-morning.

	Spot #1 – Creed Rd – 03L movements + 21R deps
WHERE	This spot is located on the corner of Creed Rd and Branscombe Rd where there is a small house. But either just drive up here for movements and leave again directly or park farther east on Creed Rd where there’s a sorta pull out on the right side. Park there for the best and safest parking and then walk up here by foot.
WHAT	This spot is good for 03L movements and 21R departures.
TIME	Sunrise till late noon.
MISC.	DO NOT HANG OUT AT THE CORNER where the corner of Creed Rd and the house is, Base security will eventually stop you. Hang out somewhere down Creed Road, at the Marsh Overlook, Walmart, would recommend the first 2 as they are much closer and then just drive up to the fence once really needed. Bring a minimal step with 2 steps to shoot over the fence if possible, however it may be safer to shoot thru the mesh or from distance from a car’s top so you do not get close to the fence at all reducing the risk of being stopped by security. Heat haze is an issue here especially on hot days. Nothing around the spot directly, but there is a Walmart a few mins to the west.
FOCAL LENGTH	100-400mm KC46 dep = 220mm / E6 arr = 125mm

	Spot #2 – Dally Road – 21L Arrivals
WHERE	Turn off Fry Rd to the south onto Dally Road and drive south on it till you pass a small shed and driveway. You can position yourself on the side of the gravel road and shoot from there. Finding the right spot can be difficult and moving around here is a bit tough due to the fields around. General rule of the thumb is about half way from the driveway and the end of the road where there will be trees at the end. You may also stand in the neighbouring streets or Hay Rd for a better angle, but some farmers/residents may sent you away.
WHAT	Good for 21L arrivals.
TIME	Mid afternoon till sunset.
MISC.	No issues with security on the side of the 21L arrival spot. Nothing around. Please come here as the farmers The road is a bit tight so may be one way and tricky at some spots. Also be aware after heavy rains or when coming in here by sports car.
FOCAL LENGTH	70-300mm C17 side on = 110mm