Zamperini Field

Zamperini Field (IATA: TOA, ICAO: KTOA, FAA LID: TOA) is a public airport three miles (5 km) southwest of downtown Torrance, in Los Angeles County, California, United States.[1]

Zamperini Field
Lomita Landing Strip
31 May 1994 USGS photo
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerCity of Torrance
LocationTorrance, California
Elevation AMSL103 ft / 31 m
Coordinates33°48′12″N 118°20′23″W
Websitewww.ci.torrance.ca.us/...
Map
KTOA
KTOA
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
11L/29R 5,000 1,524 Asphalt/concrete
11R/29L 3,000 914 Asphalt/concrete
Helipads
Number Length Surface
ft m
HI 110 34 Asphalt
Statistics (2005)
Aircraft operations173,027
Based aircraft499
Uncataloged first day cover for the dedication of Zamperini Field, Torrance, CA. By Harry Burton Lewis, Public Relations / Operations Manager of Allied's Airports, Inc. and Ex. Sec. of Torrance Chamber of Commerce.
FAA diagram

The airport is classified by the FAA as a Regional Reliever[2] and was once known as Torrance Municipal Airport; it was renamed for local sports and war hero Louis Zamperini on December 7, 1946, the 5th anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack.

History

The airport was completed by the United States Army Air Forces on March 31, 1943,[3] and was known as Lomita Flight Strip. It was an emergency landing field for military aircraft on training flights. It was closed after World War II and the War Assets Administration (WAA) turned it over to local government. Once turned over to the City of Torrance it was renamed Zamperini Field on December 7, 1946.

Facilities

Zamperini Field covers 506 acres (205 ha) and has two asphalt/concrete runways: 11L/29R, 5,000 x 150 ft (1,524 x 46 m) and 11R/29L, 3,000 x 75 ft (914 x 23 m). It has one asphalt helipad, 110 x 110 ft (34 x 34 m).[1]

In the year ending May 31, 2005 the airport had 173,027 aircraft operations, average 474 per day: 99% general aviation, 1% military and <1% air taxi. 499 aircraft are based at the airport: 89% single-engine, 8% multi-engine, 2% helicopter and <1% glider.[1]

Terminal

Zamperini Field has a small terminal with a vending machine, conference room, bathroom, and flight planning room. Outside a patio has small tables. Inside the terminal are historical papers related to the airport on the wall and a security post. A Lockheed T-33 (#52-9239) is on display on the turn court outside the terminal.[4]

Helicopter operations

The helipad for a neighboring hospital, the Torrance Medical Center, is at the north-west corner of the airfield.

Manufacturing

Zamperini Field is the home of Robinson Helicopter Company. Their entire production, assembly, and testing facilities are on the southeast side of the airfield and are the largest buildings at the field.

Museum

Zamperini Field is the new home of the Western Museum of Flight, previously in Hawthorne, California.

Accidents and incidents
  • The Aeroméxico Flight 498 or Cerritos air disaster happened in 1986, when a private Piper Cherokee owned by William Kramer en route from Torrance to Big Bear City Airport near Big Bear Lake collided with a Douglas DC-9 owned by Aeroméxico en route from Mexico to Los Angeles International Airport. Both aircraft crashed, killing all on board and a few on the ground.
  • January 19, 2019: An Aviat Pitts S-1T, N31WK, collided with an experimental Rutan VariEze, N27GM, while taxiing to parking at Zamperini Field Airport (TOA), Torrance, California. The owner/pilot of the Pitts was not injured; the airplane sustained minor damage. The owner/pilot of VariEze sustained minor injuries; the airplane was substantially damaged.[5]
  • September 19, 2019: A Cessna 177, N2323Y, airplane, was substantially damaged when it impacted a building about 3/4 mile east of the Zamperini Field Airport (TOA) Torrance, California. The commercial pilot was fatally injured, and the passenger was seriously injured.[6]
  • November 7, 2019: A Cirrus SR-22 departed from Zamperini Field in Torrance and had been in the air for about 19 minutes before it crashed. It had been heading to Cable Airport, a small independently owned airport less than two miles from the neighborhood where the plane went down, according to flight records. The pilot of a single-engine plane flying to a small airport in San Bernardino County was killed when his aircraft crashed into a home as it neared its destination, authorities said. Two people in the home were unharmed.[7]

See also

References

Notes
  1. FAA Airport Form 5010 for TOA PDF, effective 2007-10-25
  2. "2015–2019 NPIAS Report, Appendix A" (PDF, 7.89 MB). Federal Aviation Administration. January 20, 2015.
  3. Lobb 2006, p. 23.
  4. "52-9239 USAF". Aerial Visuals. 2013-05-22. Retrieved 2019-08-23.
  5. "WPR19TA068A". www.ntsb.gov. Retrieved 2019-11-27.
  6. "WPR19FA262". www.ntsb.gov. Retrieved 2019-11-27.
  7. "Pilot killed in plane crash that set an Upland home on fire". Los Angeles Times. 2019-11-07. Retrieved 2019-11-27.

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.

Bibliography
  • Lobb, Charles. Torrance Airport. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2006. ISBN 978-0-7385-4662-9
  • Shaw, Frederick J. Locating Air Force Base Sites: History's Legacy. Washington, D.C.: United States Air Force History and Museums Program, 2004. ISBN 978-0-16072-415-2
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