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Upon arrival at the Melville hanger, guests are greeted by an entertainment center and two recliners. A request for a beverage will be fulfilled by the fully functional designer kitchen that features any necessity for a weekend at the airport. Photo by Craig Mailloux |
Hospice Home Tour: A Look Beyond the Hangar Doors
April 20, 2016
By Jannette Jauregui
Santa Paula News
Wilma Melville had more than 500 flight hours under her belt when she contacted CP Aviation for a series of refresher courses in 2006.
“I asked for someone who was more seasoned,” Melville said. “I specifically said, ‘Don’t give me some young guy who just sees me and my age.’”
It had been 20 years since Melville, now 82, had served as a pilot of any aircraft. But despite the time away from the skies, Melville was far from an amateur. Her age? Only a number.
Melville was in her late 30s when she learned to fly in the 1970s alongside her husband, John, who was an avid aviator. She spent most of her time aboard experimental planes, independently built, not regulated by the FAA, but appealing to Melville, and arguably faster than most comparable regulation airplanes.
Her request for refresher courses led Melville to Judy Phelps, award-winning Master CFI-Aerobatic pilot, and co-owner of CP Aviation. It also led Melville to becoming a prominent fixture in the small airport’s tightknit community.
Melville’s hangar, located on the southwest end of the airport, shares a portion of its owner’s intensely rich story.
A retired physical education teacher, Melville founded the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation in 1996 after having travelled to Oklahoma City the year before with her black Labrador Retriever to assist with the rescue efforts after the devastating bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building.
“My life got complicated very fast,” Melville said. “I had a lot on my plate.”
Her hangar began to serve as a getaway – a go-to when she needed to simplify the demands that pulled her in every direction except to the sky.
Upon arrival guests are greeted by an entertainment center and two recliners. A request for a beverage will be fulfilled by the fully functional designer kitchen that features any necessity for a weekend at the airport. A bedroom, full bathroom with a floor that features an aerial image of Santa Paula, and a guest loft are also available to those who visit. But the focal point is, of course, Melville’s personal plane.
The Van’s Aircraft RV-7 is a two-seat, single engine, airplane sold in the form of a homemade kit. With the word “Experimental” clearly printed on the interior, the plane is in pristine condition, having flown less than 300 hours total.
“I enjoy the adventure of the plane,” Melville said.
The hangar features solar panels, and on the hangar’s main door is an image of towering mountains. Above the plane are light fixtures that feature images of clouds, giving guests, and Melville, a sense of always being in the sky. There are also a variety of images of birds.
“You see plenty of planes around here,” Melville said. “I wanted to see the birds. I look at them and think ‘I’d like to be able to fly as well as those birds fly.’”
The hangars belonging to Melville’s once flight instructor, Judy Phelps and her husband, Clay, tell a different kind of story.
As owners of CP Aviation, the Phelps’ hangars are centrally located and are in view of any guest who happens upon the entryway of the airport’s taxiway.
Founded in 1987, CP Aviation boasts Santa Paula’s intimate community ambience, and nearly flawless weather patterns. The couple met on the airport property. Clay’s family was immersed in local aviation, but Judy didn’t know much about the planes that surrounded her.
“I didn’t like sitting in the airplane not knowing anything about it,” Judy said. So she began taking lessons in 1994, and became a certified flight instructor, and renowned aerobatic pilot.
Judy’s workload includes emergency maneuver training with local CHP pilots, and her private lesson student base includes a wide variety of individuals from teachers, to accountants, and doctors.
Up until 2014, Judy says the couple’s primary hangar was little more than a tin box. But a major renovation project left it looking more like a luxury condominium – something the couple felt was a better fit for the long hours spent on the property.
Where makeshift tables and chairs once sat now stands a designer kitchen made specifically for the hangar. Featuring black granite countertops and subway tiles, the kitchen is surrounded by vinyl flooring made to look like wood that can withstand that high traffic of airport life. Just behind the kitchen is a living space used for relaxation between training sessions, featuring a dining table, recliners, entertainment center, and full bathroom. A stairway leads to an office space.
Like Melville’s hangar, the focal points are the two planes – a 1950s Cessna 180 that Clay bought as a wrecked plane. Completely restored, the white plane with blue and gold accents is a 4-seat, tail dragger that is good for flying in short fields, and is good for any trip lasting three hours or less.
Next to the Cessna is Judy’s Pitts Aerobatics plane, a 1986 model that is blue and red, with gold star accents. The 260 horsepower plane is a high performance plane that Judy uses in air shows throughout the country.
Nearby is Clay’s antique vehicle collection, which includes a restored Honda motorcycle, a Volkswagon Bug, and a Ferrari.
Next to the primary hangar is the mechanics hangar, or workshop.
“This is the meat of the business,” Judy says.
In addition to flight training, scenic flights, and aerobatic rides, CP Aviation also offers high-quality aircraft maintenance with five mechanics in all, including Clay.
“There is an immense amount of history here,” Judy said of the airport that originally opened in 1930. “Few cities have what we have, and we are extremely proud of that.”
