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Photo: Nweil / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
Sierra Sky Park Airport —
The world’s first residential airpark — where Fresno neighbors park planes in their driveways.
Sierra Sky Park isn’t your typical airport. There’s no terminal, no commercial flights, and no TSA line. What you will find is one of the most genuinely unique neighborhoods in California — and a piece of aviation history sitting quietly in northwest Fresno.
Founded on October 23, 1946 by William and Doris Smilie, Sierra Sky Park was the first residential aviation community in the world. The concept was simple and wild: build a neighborhood around a runway, widen the streets enough for aircraft wings, and let residents taxi their planes home like a car in a driveway. The idea worked so well it inspired hundreds of similar communities across the U.S. — and required the California legislature to actually change state law in 1963 to allow it.
Today the community still operates the same way. Residents own small aircraft, land on the asphalt runway (just under 3,000 feet, FAA ID: E79), and taxi down streets named after aviation legends — Doolittle Drive, Spaatz Avenue — straight to their hangars. Low street signs and tip-over mailboxes are still part of the design to protect passing wing tips.
Good to know for visitors: Sierra Sky Park is privately owned but public-use for general aviation pilots. There’s no commercial service or terminal facilities. It’s a neighborhood first — so if you’re driving by to see it, keep that in mind and be respectful of residents.
For aviation enthusiasts, it’s a bucket-list drive-by. For history buffs, there’s a historical marker on North Doolittle Drive. For curious Fresnans who’ve lived here for years and never heard of it — now you have.
Practical Details
- FAA ID: E79
- Location: 7 miles northwest of downtown Fresno, along the San Joaquin River
- Runway: Single asphalt runway, ~2,900 ft, orientation 12/30
- Use: General aviation / private aircraft only — no commercial service
- Ownership: Privately owned (Herndon-Doolittle Association, Inc.), public use
