Indian Hills Airpark (2AZ1) Salome, AZ. Many of the Arizona airparks have uniqueness about them and Indian Hills is no exception. Located 100 miles west of Phoenix Sky Harbor on Highway 60 midway between I-10/60 junction and Aguila (Eagle Roost airpark), this airpark is home to 70 residents on 93 home sites. I had the pleasure of speaking with Jerry Breeyear about the airpark; he is the Airport Facilities Manager. Jerry is amongst several volunteers at Indian Hills who have a love for aviation and want to keep overhead to a minimum.
HOA fees are $275/yr, which covers insurance, runway/taxiway resurfacing, utilities, and repairs. The home lots on the field are not palacious, but rather cozy, affordable, and very neighborly. There are 110 aircraft based here including a couple of twins, mostly singles and ultralights. There is no commercial offering of avgas, but residents are able to have private storage tanks on their property.
A dedicated building on the field houses the pilot’s lounge, exercise room, lunch area, and a meeting room which is used for the monthly EAA chapter 1144 meetings on the second Saturday of the month at 1:00pm, preceded by a noon hamburger lunch; visitors welcomed. If you receive permission from a member of the airpark or the manager, you can land and use a tie down in front of the pilot’s lounge. No waivers or paperwork needed to land; the pilot is responsible for his or her own actions.
History of the airpark goes back to the late Tom Washburn who developed the land in 1988 and started selling parcels to residents around 1989. Tom was a pilot and had a passion to sustain GA. Home and lot sales peaked in the late ‘90s, and again in 2011. Today there are 2-3 homes, and as many undeveloped lots, for sale. Indian Hills is well established and one of the favorites for winter residents. Only 20 or so residents tough it out during the hot summer months. A mile and a half north into the small town of Salome is a hardware store, a Dollar Store, a NAPA parts retailer, and a small convenience store also providing gasoline. Jerry says Salome is not a town for impulse shoppers. There’s a Wal-Mart 68 miles away in Buckeye for that.
Around the year 2009 the runway (8/26) was completely redone to highway standards with a 12”-14” base of gravel topped with two inches of packed asphalt. It’s officially 2200’ long and 40’ wide with 100’ displacements on each end, as well as having a 500’ dirt overrun heading west off of runway 26. The field is actually, or should I say unofficially, lighted continuously during night hours – radio activation on the 122.9 CTAF is NOT required. The lights are actually high brightness LEDs retrofitted into FAA sanctioned fixtures. Nights ops are available and occur frequently. Jerry estimates the utility cost for the LED lighting is around $1/mo. If you are a budget conscious pilot, enjoy neighborly pilots, and appreciate a clean and neat field, then this is your airpark.
For more information visit www.indianhillsairpark.com
Indian Hills Airpark | Salome, AZ | ||
Mgr: Gerry Breeyear (928) 916-0608 |
|