New Jersey airport comments

The are quite a few Cessna's and Pipers based at Morristown. I fly on a regular basis and while there is a fair amount of jet traffic it's not 6 to 1 more like 1 to 1. I moved my Warrior to Morristown 8 months ago to get more experiance in a tower controlled enviroment. I don't regret the move at all. Services are 1st rate. I'm 60 and got my ticket 3 years ago, so how complex can it be?

Good people, great conversation, full service fuel. I learned to fly here, so It will always be my home airport. No matter where I am based. If passing by I just can't help but landing there, it feels so comfortable.

I worked at LP from 1975-1980. Ed always called me "junior". I hated it then but over the years it was fitting. Ed was pretty old then, but he did not lack anything. He was sharp as a tack and if he missed anything Jule would let him know so.

I guess I went to work for him after he had repossed the airport from the Eastern group. I was for the most part an aircraft fueler after school and on weekends, but I wound up doing so much more. Moving planes, cutting grass, cleaning the office and assisting the mechanic when needed. And hung up a lot of what I know now are to be historical pictures in the office.

Ed always asked, every pay day, "do you want half in pay and half in flight time"? I kick my self in the butt today. I could have been trained to fly by the same guy that helped Amelia Earhart fly the Atlantic, wow Ed! And that also would have included instruction by Tony Farrell.

But I at the time liked fast cars and the girls that came with it. I think I kept Ed and the other guys happy with all the teenage girls that showed up to watch me work. But Ed would always come out, "junior we need to get doc's plane out" or something. Meaning she had to go.

Ed loved the airport and always wanted it looking its best. He also gave a lot back, never missing the chance to buy me a lunch at the Pequannock sandwich shop. He kept me stuffed with salt tabs in the summer also. And when the day was slow I would go up to his house and mow the lawn.

Jules and Ed had a nice, cozy log cabin up in the hills. The road getting there was windy and tight. If you think flying in a plane with Ed was fun, you needed to ride in a car on the way to his house. The tree limbs would fly in the open window and slap you in the face if you let it. He was a daredevil in my book.

The first flight I had in an airplane was in his J-3 Cub. I never knew you could look over your shoulder at the runway on final approach. That's how Ed did it all the time! And just prior to the wheel hitting the ground he would snap the tail around and bam you were rolling down the runway.

He came out of the office one day to see me propping an aircraft. I guess I was lucky that the plane fired up and I wasn't injured. But Ed made sure that I got some instruction before doing it again. The first instruction was a lot of ear chewing. But that's how he was, you didn't do it unless you were going to do it right.

We had one guy, Bernie. He owned a Mooney, and every time he flew it was "swift". He was German and the plane was fast. Ed would wait for him to come in for a landing and then the chase was on. Bernie would taxi way to fast for Ed's liking and he would let him know it. Better yet almost every landing Bernie would ding his prop after porposing down the runway, Ed would stop him and say he couldn't fly till it was fixed.

We had only one crash during the time I worked there. The radio shops owner had a bell 47 helicopter, that crashed just short of me while I was cutting the grass. He took off and pulled up too soon causing the clutch to go. He attempted a auto rotation but hit tail first, which caused the chopper to spin and land on its side.

Ed and Jules have since gone and I miss those hot New Jersey days at the airport. I'm glad to see that they have gone down in the history of aviation in NJ, and that they left us with so much. May LP airport continue to prosper.

Thankfully, Avant Air moved out of their leaded office space at Mac Dan to give appropriate fuel competition! Mac Dan's confidential fuel discounts are rediculous. Some people/companies/flight schools/flying clubs nearly receive 20% discounts on Avgas & Jet A, the data sheets area behind the front desk in the main lobby of Mac Dan.

-That kind of discount can add up to thousands of dollars quite fast!

-Anyone wonder why their fuel trucks are always empty or why a service call for fuel takes up to thirty minutes?

For a Class C airport, this place is very GA friendly. If you are new to Class C operations, you could do alot worse that KACY as your first taste.

I had exactly the same experience at Republic in spring 2004, right down to sitting on the runway (as instructed by tower) and holding everyone else up. Same lesson -- if you can take a VFR departure out of a NY-area airport, do. It's the controller's error putting you on the runway before your clearance is ready, but why invite trouble in the first place?

I must have tied up traffic for 30 minutes of more waiting at the entrance for my IFR clearance. I'd taxied out after being told to, but there were 4 or 5 planes waiting behind me and by the time I suddenly realized that I could depart VFR and pick up a clearance later, the clearance had actually come. I felt like a complete dick.

My first Solo was out of Trinca about 10 years ago. The airport is a little run down, and a bit behind the times these days. I never thought much of those trees or divits in the grass as a student pilot. A bit of a bump was my launch pad for soft field take offs. All the little "Tricks" you learned flying out of Trinca only made you a better pilot. Avoiding tall trees wasn't something that made it tough, it made you FLY! Something a lot of "pavement" pilots forget how to do I think.

Trinca is one of the last grass strips around in NJ. It is a big part of many pilots fond memories. It is a truly enchanting airport. Look past the rough edges, reach back through time. You can still see and hear all the avid aviation enthusiasts sitting around on the old picnic table bench, chatting the warm summer days away. To this day, I can walk around the hangers, look in the office, sit on that bench, and get that same warm feeling of camaraderie we all shared in our never ending love for aviation.

A 7:45PM trip around the pattern in a J3 Cub, watching the sun set on a warm summer night, I can't think of anything more magical! I love this airport and only hope it will be around for a long time to come, to share with my children. Visit if you can!

S.J.M.

I was hired to work as a flight instructor in April 1972 by Ed Gorski, minutes after we met.

I had graduated from Embry-Riddle and headed to NJ to pursue my aviation career. No jobs were available at all, except a FEW instructor jobs! Ed Gorski was somewhat gruff, but a real nice person. I had 3 other offers for FI positions, and I ended up taking a job at Linden Airport, NJ for a lot less money ($3/hour) than Ed offered ($15/hour), however, more students and more opportunities at LDJ. I stayed at LDJ for 16 months and moved on to a Cessna 421B job at North Philadelphia, which lasted for about 18 months.

Long Story Short, I ended up getting hired at Lincoln Park in early 1975 by a group of individuals as a Flight Instructor. An Eastern Airlines Crowd of pilots, who hired a puppet manager to follow their directives, hired me. Ed had sold the Captain Jack Faes/George Kershaw, Eastern groupof pilots, the airport, in good faith, and they concentrated their collections of Pitts Aircraft throughout 1975. What a racket these guys had. Maybe I was envious, as I was trying to break into a business that had no opportunities available at the time. This crowd took advantage of everything that they could get their hands on.

I left the job in August 1975 as I had seen enough, and one of the Eastern bunch (Jack Faes) needed a job for his son, who had lost his job at Wien Airlines in Alaska, so I was the junior flight instuctor and had to leave.

What a difference from this BUNCH to Ed Gorski. Well, the Captain Jack Faes and Eastern Airlines' crowd eventually overstayed their agreement with Ed, with the hangars filled with their Pitts Special toys. They never paid their local taxes ($75,000) to Lincoln Park Township while they managed the airport, and good old Ed Gorski was contacted for a default of the real estate taxes due. I guess Ed Gorski had to throw the puppet manager Bill out on his ass, and then the Faes Eastern crowd. Then Ed took possession of his beloved airport, and I assume ran it himself for many more years.

God bless Ed Gorski, he was a straight forward honest guy, not like the low lives that had infiltrated Lincoln Park from 1975-1977. I wish Ed was still around. With respect to Eastern Airlines Captain Jack Faes, he kicked me in the ass in August 1975, and then further attempted to trash my aviation career with unfounded bad references, however, I managed a successful career in corporate aviation as a manager/chief pilot from 1979-1998, operating several Falcon 50s, Gulfstream III/IV, Lear 55, Citation VII for over twenty (20) years, all based in New Jersey. I am now a B747-400 Captain for the last ten (10) years.

I'll never forget my conversations with Ed Gorski. A straight an honest man, who always treated me with respect and kindness. I am delighted that Ed took his airport back from that bunch of Eastern Airlines pilots who had abused their stay and stacked the hangars with their toys, and abused the employees!

Wherever you are Ed, I will always remember you fondly. And as far as that Eastern Airline Bunch, they got their due, eventually, in more ways than one!

I was hired to work as a flight instructor in April 1972 by Ed Gorski, minutes after we met. I had graduated from Embry-Riddle and headed to NJ to pursue my aviation career. Ed Gorski was somewhat gruff, but a real nice person. I had 3 other offers for FI positions, and I ended up taking a job at Linden Airport, NJ for alot less money than Ed offered, however, more students and more opportunities at LDJ. I stayed at LDJ for 16 months and moved on to a Cessna 421B job at North Philadelphia, which lasted for about 18 months.

Long Story Short, I ended up getting hired at Lincoln Park in early 1975 by a group of individuals as a FI. An Eastern Airlines Crowd of pilots, managed by a pupet manager who followed their directives, hired me. Ed had sold the Captain Jack Faes/George Kershaw, Eastern group, the airport, in good faith, and they concentrated their collections of Pitts Aircraft throughout 1975. What a racket these guys had. Maybe I was envious, as I was trying to break into a business that had no opportuinites available, but this crowd took advantage of everything that they could get their hands on. I left the job in August 1975 as I had seen enough, and one of the Eastern bunch needed a job for his son, who had lost his job at Wein , so I was the junior guy and had to leave. What a difference from this BUNCH to Ed Gorski. Well, the Jack Faes (Larry Faes) Eastern Airlines' crowd eventually overstayed their agreement, with the hangars filled with their toys. They never paid their local taxes to Lincoln Park, and good old ed Gorski was contacted. I guess had to throw the manager out on his ass, and then the Faes crowd. Then Ed took posession of his beloved airport. God bless Ed Gorski, he was a straight forward honest guy, not like the low lives that had infiltrated Lincol Park from 1975-1977. I wish Ed was still around. With respect to Captain Jack Faes kick in my ass in August 1975, and then his attempt to trash my career with bad references, I managed a sucessful career in corporate aviation as a manager/chief pilot operating a Falcon 50, Gulfstream III/IV, Lear 55, Citation VII for over twenty (20) years, all based in New Jersey. I am now a B747-400 Captain for the last ten (10) years.

I'll never forget my conversations with Ed Gorski. A straight an honest man, who always treated me with respect and kindness. I am delighted that Ed took his airport back from that bunch of Eastern Airlines pilots who had abused their stay and stacked the hangars with their toys, and abused the employees!

Lakehurst is where the Hindenburg crashed on May 6, 1937 after a trans-Atlantic flight:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LZ_129_Hindenburg#The_disaster

The airport's owner is also the US importer for the Beriev 103, a unique Ukrainian twin engine amphibian. It seats six, floats on its hull and its wing roots, and the two engines are mounted on pods aft of the wing. There is usually one of these on the field.

A self-serve fuel pump with credit card reader is available.

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MMU has come a long way in twenty years. Today, seeing a Cessna take off is an odd event...usually preceeded by five or six Citations, a Lear, and a few helicopters. Don't let this deter you, the ATC staff are very friendly and helpful and the airport is very convienent.

Woodbine is a nice airport if you'd like cheap fuel and need an airport closer to the northern end of cape may county. Parking is 5 dollars overnight on the grass. Runways are in decent shape, just watch out for banner towing in the summer...they are crazy crazy people.

Certainly not the most well maintained grass strip in NJ, but very accessible for training. Approaches from the south very tough with huge pine trees on the approach end. Runway undulates badly, so don't feel bad if you float every 3 seconds while bouncing down the turf. Easy to find though...grass very worn.

Like the other comment, make sure you can stop a plane in less than 1500 ft. The water on both ends will stop your plane for you if you can not... Beautiful airport, esp in the fall. Don't pass this stop up

CDW is indeed tough to spot especially when MMU is only 5 miles away and practically visible from space. The AFD also gives you a super long list of rules and noise abatement procedures that often scare new pilots away. Just ignore them. The airport is surrounded by industrial parks and a golf course. And who cares about golfers right? Runway 9/27 recently renamed 10/28. Lighting at night could be stronger...and don't feel bad when a controller who sounds like a man turns out to be the scariest woman alive...other than that...GREAT AIRPORT.

Newton is a nice little strip, well maintained...and frankly, boring as all heck. You'll miss this spot if you don't look down as it's nestled in thick trees. Also, don't go off the northern approach end...there's a nice lake to cushion any further taxiing you intend to do. Other than that, great spot to practice or take a break from a long trip. No lights, and no fuel.

Yes, I don't see anything in the satellite photo either. According to the FAA database, there's supposed to be a private 1,400 foot turf runway there (not listed in the AFD). Does anyone have more information?

I've checked the coordinates and looked at the satellite image and found nothing at this location.

Yes, sadly the field closed almost a year ago, on September 30, 2006. According to the Wikipedia article, it was built in 1910, was the first aerodrome to be described as an "air-port" (in 1919), and was the founding location of the U.S. Civil Air Patrol (1941).

This airport has two FBOs:

Mac Dan 130.55 MHz

(973) 227-8339, (888) MACDAN8

http://www.macdan.com/

Caldwell Air Service

(973) 808-9047

I've used both -- as I remember them, Caldwell Air Service is less expensive, but a bit run down and with so-so service. Mac Dan is a bit more expensive, but has a nice facility and much better service. If you need help (e.g. limo bookings, etc.), Mac Dan's probably your best bet; if you just want to park, Caldwell Air Service may be fine.

For some reason, I always find this airport hard to see from low altitude when I'm a couple of miles away. There are buildings around it and a low hill on one side. When I first visited here I was a fairly new pilot, and I wonder if my not seeing it now is just a throwback to that first visit.

This is a nice airport for visiting northern New Jersey (a bit too far for Manhattan) -- I've stopped here a few times to visit a customer almost within walking distance. Unfortunately, the airport is most famous as the one John F. Kennedy Jr. departed from in his Saratogo on his last flight.