Airspacers — Since 1958

The Run Up

Airspacers Bi-Monthly Newsletter

Jul-Aug 2026 • Information Hotel

🍔 Quick Bites

  • New Social Co-Chairs Eve Lopez and Elaine Mou are in-seat. Fly-out to MRY scheduled Sep 12 with additional events to follow rest of year
  • Sam Feldman is the new Key Captain
  • Opportunity to work with students interested in aviation via EAA Compton – reach out to Kris Maine for details
  • N204RM shared agreement extended for one year – thank you Harry Sax!
  • Non-Equity Membership tier is live. Dues are $205/month, no buy-in, no waitlist, restricted to 47C (SR-22) and 4RM (SR-20) operations only
  • Membership interest continues to grow with 25+ people on the waitlist and 15+ new Non-Equity or Social Members since May 2026
  • Flightbase.ai live for Club Service management; need beta testers for migration later this year – reach out to Nate Siahpush, Ari Levine, Adrian Santos, or Rahul Chandra for more info
  • New website launched – SaveSMO.org – with information on how to get involved in the effort
  • Q2 2026 data and financials now available in Data Dashboard – see member portal for details
  • As of June 30, trailing-twelve-month flying surpassed 1,500 hours, the highest in five years
  • Membership Profile Pages coming soon – reach out to Adrian Santos with questions or ideas
  • New toolkit available in the hangar – help yourselves as needed for Part 43 preventative maintenance. Thank you Matthew Setzer!
  • Hangar restoration and improvement project underway. Send ideas or input to Hangar Captain (Alex Silver) or Social Chairs
  • SMO administration now mostly remote, underscoring need increased vigilance on field
  • Proposal submitted from SMAA to City requesting Iron Tire Dolly for transporting disabled aircraft off runways and taxiways

Summer 2026

Summer Recap: Air Shows, Flyouts, Races

Airspacers Board

It was a busy summer filled with fly-outs, meet-ups at airshows, participation in air races, and other events with old and new members. Here are a few highlights:

EAA AirVenture / Oshkosh

Oshkosh 2026 was an epic celebration of aviation and America’s 250th birthday. Several members were in attendance, including Matthew Setzer, Ryan Haid, Ian Dutton, Alex Silver, and Harry Sax. Harry made the ~30-hour round-trip flight from SMO in 4RM. The firework, drone, air, and pyrotechnics show on Wednesday night was one for the books.

Airspacers members at Oshkosh
Members Ryan Haid, Matthew Setzer, and Ian Dutton in front of the Douglas DC-3 at Oshkosh

COPA / CPPP Sacramento

A number of our Cirrus pilots attended the Cirrus Owners & Pilots Association in Sacramento, including Kris Maine, Aaron Weisblatt, Andrew Jackson, Alex Silver, and Oliver Graff. Part of our Cirrus fleet – 3GS and 47C – were in attendance as well.

Five Airspacers members at the Cirrus Owners and Pilots Association event
Members Alex Silver, Oliver Graff, Kris Maine, Andrew Jackson, and Aaron Weisblatt at COPA

Palms to Pines Air Race

The Palms to Pines Air Race is a 750-mile air race from Santa Monica to Central Oregon for female pilots, sponsored by the LA 99s. Members cheered on our very own Eve Lopez, who averaged over 200 knots GS, beating her handicap by 18 knots, and took home first place out of ~30 pilots. Congratulations Eve! 🥇

Race airplane number 9 crossing the starting line at Santa Monica Airport
The starting line at SMO

Ad Hoc Flyouts and Meetups

One of the best parts about Airspacers is unplanned, spontaneous fly-outs with fellow members. This summer, members flew everywhere from the Bay (SQL, PAO, MRY) to San Diego (CRQ, MYR) to Catalina (AVX) to mid-state (SBA, PRB, SBP) to Arizona (Sedona).

David Blumstein and Jake Sager smiling in the cockpit
Members David Blumstein and Jake Sager on a lunch mission to SBP
Six Airspacers members gathered around a table at The Whaler
Members Ian Dutton, David Slone, Alex Mandelberg, and Z Holly on a drinks mission at The Whaler in Venice
N204RM parked in front of Sedona's red rock landscape
4RM en route to Sedona
Airspacers members on a lunch mission at SBA
Members Nick Katsinas, Nathan Richards, Adam Handwerker, Ryan Haid, and Ishan Shah on a lunch mission to SBA

🗞️ Welcome New Members!

  • Mike Hendricks (Non-Equity)
  • Adam Handwerker (Social)

Interested in membership? Check out our website.

✅ Ratings Corner

  • Aaron Weisblatt: Ground Instructor

Congratulations Aaron!

📷 Views from the Cockpit

Aerial view of Big Sur from N298P
Member Neil Spears takes 98P on a tour of Big Sur
Matthew Setzer in the cockpit of a Boeing 777 at O'Hare
Member Matthew Setzer preflights a 777 at ORD en route to Oshkosh

ℹ️ About Airspacers

Founded in 1958, Airspacers Flying Club is the oldest and most established flying club at Santa Monica Airport (KSMO), and one of the longest-running flying clubs in the greater LA area. Our mission has remained the same for over six decades: make the joy of aviation accessible, affordable, and community-driven.

We are a cooperative of 75 equity members, each an equal shareholder of Air-Spacers, Inc., the non-profit entity that owns and operates our aircraft, and an additional 30+ members across our Non-Equity, Social, and Leaseback membership tiers. Our fleet includes seven diverse airplanes, each suited for different styles and missions – available to any qualified member. To learn more, check out our website.

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