St. Petersburg, FL

KSPG, a.k.a. Albert Whitted Airport, is located near downtown St. Petersburg on Florida's Gulf Coast. KSPG offers pilots easy access to the quaint shops and restaurants located in the downtown district.

The St. Pete Pier, Salvador Dali museum and world class accommodations at the Vinoy Hotel are all within walking or biking distance of KSPG.

If you like Spanish food, I think the Columbia Restaurant still serves the best you can find. It's located on the top of the St. Pete Pier easy walking distance just to the north of KSPG.

Each Spring, the St. Pete Grand Prix is held nearby, with a portion of the airport utilized as the race track. Flying into and out of Whitted can be a real treat as the runways are directly adjacent to Tampa Bay, giving everyone on board spectacular views of the entire Bay Area. A new FBO facility has recently been completed offering ample and safe aircraft parking and excellent service.

When flying to Albert Whitted, I recommend planning your route direct to the PIE VOR and then south to KSPG. Contact Tampa approach for Class B clearance and usually they will vector you directly over the east-west runway at Tampa International at 1500 to 4500 feet. Over the Causeway just to the west of KTPA, ATC will turn you south over the PIE VOR and into the KSPG airport area.

Approaching the airport from the north, the KSPG Tower may advise you to use caution to avoid any masts of sailboats moving in or out of the St Pete Yacht Club or may close runway 18-36 if a cruise ship is moving into or out of the terminal just to the south of the airport. (Honest, both have happened to me.)

When leaving, the route is usually just reversed.

I try to avoid flying across the bay east to west because high speed military traffic moves into and out of MacDill AFB over Ruskin and Tampa Bay. When I have done so, it has been with Class B service from Tampa approach.