The airport of San Luis Obispo, California is a small regional airport with roughly 0.6 Mio. passengers annually. Schedule passenger flights are provided by Alaska, American and United plus their regional subsidiaries. But expect a lot of general aviation movements here, from small prop liners to big biz jets.

Written by Alex Crail and Bonna Herlocher. Last Update: October 2024

Rating
Movements
Airline Variety
Photo Locations
Weather
Airport Information
Runways
11/29	1.859 m (6.100 ft)
07/25	762 m (2.500 ft)
Terminals	One for all flights
Spotting Information
Ladder	Not needed at any of the locations.
Car/Public Transport	Car/Uber/Rideshare is needed to reach spot 2. First spot is right next to the terminal.
Drinks/Food	There is the “Spirit of San Luis” Restaurant right next to terminal and the first spot. Otherwise there is nothing close.
Hotels	There aren`t any hotels around the airport area.
Season	No special season.
Security	Both spots are more ore less official viewing areas so you won`t have any trouble there.
Runway Usage
11/29	Longest and main active runway. 29 direction is in use most time.
07/25	Shorts runway. Expect just some props here.

	Spot #1 – Viewing Area North – All 11/29 movements, taxiway, ramps
WHERE	There is a nice viewing area next to “Spirit of San Luis” restaurant, a good place to grab breakfast and prices are very reasonable. Outside you can find free parking for up to 2 hours and there is a speaker that plays live ATC for 10 minutes if you hit a button. It is about a 7 minute walk from the airport terminal which is accessible by bus. There is no fence in the way and you have an unobstructed view of the runway and taxiway.
WHAT	All runway 11/29 movements plus taxiway and ramp views. Please note the local FBO might park aircraft in front of the viewing area so the view might be blocked.
TIME	Note that this spot is good from sunrise to about 10:30am.
MISC.	Nice place with benches to sit and watch airplanes depart. Restaurant and toilets are next to this place.
FOCAL LENGTH	200mm for general aviation and anything from 70mm-100mm for narrow body planes and regionals.

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	Spot #2 – Viewing Area South – All 11/29 movements, 25 arrivals
WHERE	This spot is on the south side of the airport, opposite of the terminal. Drive into Buckley Rd until the middle of the runway. There is a small dirt parking lot and a wood picnic table there where you can park and stay. To get above the fence stand on the table at either end and you should be fine. Uber and other ride share locations also recognize this location for pick up and drop off if you don’t have a car.
WHAT	All movements on 11/29 plus  25 arrivals.
TIME	This spot is good from 1pm to sunset. Note in the summer heat haze can be an issue at this location.
MISC.	There are no bathrooms close by unless you go to the airport terminal or gas stations.
FOCAL LENGTH	200-300mm for general aviation. 110-140mm for regional aircraft. And 50-80mm for mainline narrow body aircraft.

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