It is probably not an exaggerationto say that these three books have revolutionized general aviation flying in the westernstates. Pilots Guide to California Airports,its sister publication Pilots Guide to SouthwesternAirports, and the recently released PilotsGuide to Northwestern Airports are without question the mostcomprehensive and useful airport guides ever assembled for pilots who fly in the West.

Creating Pilots Guide was an immense project that took more than a decadeto evolve into the invaluable blue and orange books that have occupied a prominentposition in my flight bag for many years. Husband-and-wife team Richard and Nancy Fouquetfounded Optima Publications and began developing the Pilots Guideconcept in about 1970. But it took four long yearsbefore the first edition of Pilots Guide to CaliforniaAirports rolled off the press in 1974 and quickly became California'sbest-selling source of airport information. Optima updates the Pilots Guidethree times a year - in February, June, and October - to keep the guide alwaysup-to-date.

Now remember that back in those days, there was no such thing as desktop publishingsoftware or laser printers! All the artwork had to be hand-drawn, the hundreds ofphotographs had to be matted, all the text had to be typeset on a monster Merganthalerphototypesetting machine, and the pages pasted up by hand. When you consider that the the"Blue Book" is more than 400 pages long with over 600 photographis, maps anddiagrams, you can just imagine what dedication this effort must have taken!

In 1980, Optima granted alicense to produce and publish a similar Pilots Guide covering the southwesternstates to another husband-and-wife team, Richard and Suzanne Reese. Three years later,in 1983, the Reeses' company RGR Publications released the first edition of Pilots Guide to Southwestern Airports coveringArizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah. (The southwestern guide does not includeCalifornia airports.) This orange-covered book is even bigger than its blue-coveredcousin, with more than 550 pages and over 1,000 photos, maps and diagrams!

The newest member of the Pilots Guide family was released in March of 1999. Pilots Guide to Northwestern Airports is the most detailed airport guide ever offered for Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Wyoming. This green-covered book has more than 400 pages with over 800 photos, maps and diagrams, employingthe sameproven format of the other two Pilots Guide books, and is a mostwelcome addition to pilots like me who fly in the northwest.

And just for fun, don't miss this! Fun Places to Fly issue #9 is chock full of information about ten of the most enjoyable fly-in destinations in California and the West; Catalina Island, Carmel by the Sea, Eureka and Mammoth to name a few. Profusely illustrated and with everything you need to know to plan a marvelous day or weekend trip.

Pilots Guide tells you everything you need to know about an airport andits surrounding environment and airspace so you'll know precisely what to expect and whatto avoid as you fly to or from that field. Each guide devotes five full pages to eachtower-controlled airport, and a half or full page to each non-tower airport. Each PilotsGuide comes in a sturdy three-ring binder measuring 9"x7" which fitscomfortably in most flight bags, and is revised twice a year.

As you approach a tower-controlled airport, you open the guide to the first twofacing pages for that field: the approach information page on the left and the fold-outapproach map on the right.

Just imagine how great it would be to have all this information on your nextcross-country to a busy, unfamiliar airport!

Non-tower airports are presented in Pilots Guide in a similar fashion butin a much more compact format. The California guide devotes a half-page to eachnon-towered airport, while the Southwest guide devotes a full-page to each. Theinformation for each non-towered airport includes:

Each PilotsGuide is revised twice a year. Every six months, subscribers receive anenvelope of new pages with instructions as to which pages to remove and replace. The$38.95 purchase price of Pilots Guide includes revision service for the first yearafter initial purchase. After the year is up, subcribers receive a renewal notice for thenext 12-month period. Renewals for the revision service after the first year are $26.00per year.

Pilots Guide Leather Binder
This won't make you a better pilot, but it might make your flying more enjoyable. Bindersare hand made from natural cowhide, with the familiar Pilots Guide logo"branded" on the cover. Your name or identification (up to 16 characters) can beimprinted onto the front cover. Fits the California and Northwest Guides only - theSouthwest Guide has too many pages to fit. $44.95.

Pilots Guide Color-Coded Index Tabs
Each set has five tabs, every one a different color. They fit all three Pilots Guides andalso Jeppesen Airway Manuals. These tabs slip into the rings-without needing to open therings-letting you flip instantly to the page you want. $5.95 for the set.

As I said at the outset, if you fly west of the Continental Divide, yousimply must have these magnificent books! We've arranged with both Optima Publicationsand RGR Publications to let you purchase Pilots Guide toCalifornia Airports, Pilots Guide toSouthwestern Airports, Pilots Guide toNorthwestern Airports and Fun Placesto Fly on-line right here...and help support continued free access to AVweband AVflash in the process. This is a fabulous product and we really appreciateyour patronage.

When you receive your copy of Pilots Guide, look it over, use it on across-country, put it through its paces. If you don't think it measures up to yourexpectations, return it within 30 days for a full and immediate refund.

But I can virtually guarantee that once you've tried Pilots Guide you'll neverwant to fly without it again!

QUESTIONS?