By Mike McCann
APA Day Trip Coordinator
The aviation and weather gods must have been shining on APA in August as our trip to the Grand Canyon Airport and walk to the small town of Tusayan for breakfast was a big success. Some say that you can’t do breakfast flights during the Arizona summer months; however, we had a record 28 pilots and guests as well as 14 aircraft successfully make the flight to KGCN. The weather was perfect with calm winds and temperatures in the high 70s.
A huge thanks also goes to Grand Canyon Airlines FBO manager Tristin who had staff on hand to coordinate parking and fueling for our 14 aircraft as well as ground transportation to the restaurant. The FBO team was busy helping us for most of the 3 hours our group was there, and it was very much appreciated.
Our restaurant destination was the Plaza Bonita Mexican Restaurant which is located on the southern end of Tusayan and never disappoints with a large breakfast buffet waiting for us.
A number of our group decided to stay overnight at the south rim of the Grand Canyon as the weather forecast was clear of storms for several days. Some departed early the following morning, while others (i.e. my wife and I) decided to depart late morning and spend a few more hours at the South Rim.
Even though the local weather forecast continued to show no rain or storms, as you can see below, the route between the Grand Canyon and Phoenix became filled with scattered thunderstorms.
We had to weave our way around a number of storm cells, but the on-board weather imaging was tremendously helpful with route planning, and the return flight was uneventful.
September 2026 Day Trip:
Our September day trip will be heading to Show Low for the annual Wings & Wheels event in conjunction with local EAA Chapter 586. This will be our 3rd year participating in this event and it’s always a lot of fun and a great turnout. As you can see from the flyer (on page 16), the event is on Saturday, September 19 from 7am to 2pm. For those wishing to meet for breakfast, plan on an 8:30am arrival time, but come whenever your schedule allows as lunch will also be available.
Feel free to contact me with any questions (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) and we'll look forward to seeing you.
Safe flying,
Mike