Food Truck Fly-In draws thousands

Marking its fifth year, California’s San Martin Airport (E16) Food Truck Fly-In on Nov. 1, 2025, had close to 6,000 folks come out to enjoy the warm weather, eat some good food, browse dozens of vendor booths, and see lots of airplanes.

Upon entering the event, I was greeted by the sight of a hot air balloon aloft, the last of some early morning rides while the conditions remained favorable. I spotted nine or so aircraft interspersed among the pop-ups and tents for folks to check out so this was off to a good start.

Among the general aviation static displays was a Cessna 208B Super Cargomaster bearing the name of Reliable Robotics. Reliable Robotics is working on autonomous flight systems that can be retrofitted onto existing, type-certified aircraft. Archer Aviation was also in attendance with a booth but did not bring its eVTOL.

One great feature about these events, especially at smaller airports, is the opportunity to observe the comings and goings of aircraft in relatively close proximity.

San Martin’s sole runway was kept busy with a steady stream of traffic, interrupted only by fly-in activities, including skydiving demonstrations, formation flight demos, and some helicopter departures to round out the variety.

A nice surprise were two passes overhead by a Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star jet trainer.

Two separate groups later took to the air. First up were the Northern California Beech Boys formation demonstration team. They fielded five dissimilar aircraft, a mix of Bonanzas, RVs, and a Grumman Tiger, performing a variety of formations overhead.

Next was the West Coast Ravens with a half dozen RV aircraft.

Compared to other regional fly-ins, it was impressive to see this much aerial content.

Meanwhile I enjoyed seeing some uncommon aircraft arriving. One downside is that the transient aircraft parking filled up, forcing later visitors to park on the other side of the airport away from the attendees.

There were plenty of food trucks at this event, 15 in all. Live music was provided by Wingin’ It, an all-pilot band.

This was a fun event to attend, accompanied by a last blast of warm summer weather — a great way to close out my 2025 season of aviation events.

As noted by fly-in co-organizer Joe McMurray: “Events like this are about more than just fun, they keep small airports alive.”

Amen to that — a timely reminder that we all need to do what we can to support our local airports.

For more information: SCPilots.org/Food-Truck-Fly-In

More Photos From The Fly-In