Santa Barbara's Airport: A Traveler's Guide To Sba

Santa Barbara, California, is served by Santa Barbara Municipal Airport (SBA), which is located 7 miles west of downtown Santa Barbara. The airport offers multiple daily nonstop flights to and from various destinations across the country, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, and Phoenix. With its red-tiled roof, dark wood beams, and a garden full of jasmine and bougainvillea, the airport is also a landmark of aviation and architectural history.

Santa Barbara Municipal Airport (SBA)

The airport is near the University of California, Santa Barbara, and the city of Goleta. It was annexed to the city of Santa Barbara by a 7-mile-long, 300-foot-wide corridor, mostly under the Pacific Ocean. Most of the airport is 10 to 15 feet above sea level and borders the Goleta Slough wetland area.

Santa Barbara Municipal Airport is a landmark of aviation and architectural history, with its red tile roof, dark wood beams, and an old mission garden full of jasmine and bougainvillea. Aviation in the area began in 1914 when Lincoln J. Beachey flew an airplane across Goleta Valley. Two years later, the Loughead brothers, who later changed their name to Lockheed, established a seaplane factory on State Street and constructed a wooden ramp on West Beach to launch their planes.

The airport offers multiple non-stop daily flights to and from various destinations, including LAX, SFO, SEA, PDX, DEN, PHX, DFW, ATL, and SLC. As of December 2024, the airport is served by Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Airlines, Southwest Airlines, and United Airlines.

Santa Barbara Municipal Airport provides both short-term and long-term parking options. It is recommended that passengers arrive at the airport two hours early for domestic flights and three hours early for international flights.

Airlines serving Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara Municipal Airport (SBA) is the airport that serves Santa Barbara, California. It is a short 10-mile drive from downtown Santa Barbara. The airport is located off of State Route 217 at the Sandspit Road exit and can also be reached from US 101 by taking State Route 217 or exiting off of Fairview Avenue.

SBA offers multiple non-stop daily flights to and from LAX, SFO, SEA, PDX, DEN, PHX, DFW, ATL, and SLC. The airport is served by Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Airlines, Southwest Airlines, and United Airlines.

United Airlines serves Denver (DEN), Los Angeles (LAX), and San Francisco (SFO) with a mix of SkyWest CRJ-200/CRJ-700/E-175 regional jets, United Airbuses, and United 737s. Southwest Airlines offers flights to Las Vegas, Oakland, Sacramento, Denver, and Phoenix.

In the 1980s, Santa Barbara-based Apollo Airways, later renamed Pacific Coast Airlines, offered nonstop flights to Los Angeles, Las Vegas, San Francisco, San Jose, Monterey, Fresno, and Bakersfield, with direct flights to Sacramento and Lake Tahoe. Another local airline, Connectair, operated nonstop flights to Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and San Jose, California. Both Connectair and Pacific Coast are no longer in operation.

Santa Barbara Municipal Airport was categorized as a small hub primary airport by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 2019, with 510,141 enplanements. Aviation in the area began in 1914 when Lincoln J. Beachey flew an airplane across Goleta Valley. The airport was annexed to the city of Santa Barbara, with most of the airport 10 to 15 feet above sea level and bordering the Goleta Slough wetland area.

Aviation history

Santa Barbara Municipal Airport (SBA) is the airport that serves Santa Barbara, California. It is located 7 miles west of downtown Santa Barbara and is near the University of California, Santa Barbara, and the city of Goleta. The airport has a distinct architectural style, with a red tile roof, dark wood beams, and an old mission garden filled with jasmine and bougainvillea.

The aviation history of Santa Barbara dates back to 1914 when Lincoln J. Beachey became the first person to fly an airplane across Goleta Valley. In 1916, just two years later, the Loughead brothers, who later changed their name to Lockheed, established a seaplane factory on State Street. They constructed a wooden ramp on West Beach to launch their planes, marking the beginning of aviation development in the area.

In 1928, Gordon Sackett and Royce Stetson landed a Hisso-powered airplane in a cow pasture near the corner of Hollister and Fairview Avenues. This event led to the creation of the first airstrip, which would eventually become the Santa Barbara Municipal Airport. As airplane manufacturing gained traction in the late 1930s, the airstrip evolved into a full-fledged airfield. Western General established a production facility for Meteor airplanes, while Santa Barbara Airways, founded by Frederick Stearns II, expanded the airfield by constructing two additional runways and large hangars. Stearns also installed the airfield's first radio equipment.

Commercial airline service to Santa Barbara commenced in 1932 with Pacific Seaboard Air Lines, which operated round-trip flights between several cities in California, including Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, and San Francisco. United Airlines followed suit in 1936, offering flights from Santa Barbara/Goleta. Over the years, various airlines have served Santa Barbara, including Pacific Air Lines, which introduced the first jet service to the airport in 1966, and United Airlines, which operated direct flights to New York/Newark via LAX and Milwaukee by 1972.

Today, Santa Barbara Municipal Airport continues to offer a range of nonstop daily flights to destinations such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, and Phoenix, among others. The airport is committed to providing a flyer-friendly experience and is easily accessible, located just a short drive from downtown Santa Barbara.

Transport to and from the airport

Santa Barbara Municipal Airport (SBA) is the airport that serves Santa Barbara, California. It is located 10 miles from downtown Santa Barbara, which takes approximately 12 minutes to drive.

There are several transport options for getting to and from Santa Barbara Airport. The airport offers a flyer-friendly experience, with easy access from the terminal to the gate, and a variety of ground transportation options. These include:

• Rental cars: There are rental car options available at the airport, which can be picked up and dropped off right outside the terminal.
• Shuttle services: Commercial and courtesy shuttles are available, with designated pick-up and drop-off locations outside the terminal. The shuttle service for the economy lot runs every 15 minutes and does not require a reservation.
• Taxis: Taxis are available outside the terminal, with designated pick-up and drop-off zones. The taxi ride from the airport to Santa Barbara Station takes about 12 minutes and costs $40-50.
• Rideshare services: Rideshare services, such as Uber and Lyft, can be used for drop-off and pick-up outside the terminal. There is currently no designated pick-up zone, so passengers must follow the instructions in the app to meet their driver.
• Public buses: The Santa Barbara MTD Route 11 bus stops on Moffett Road across from the terminals and connects to the MTD Transit Center. From there, passengers can take the Amtrak train or connect to other bus routes. The bus from Hollister & La Patera to Carrillo & Bath runs hourly and costs $1-2. The journey takes approximately 29 minutes.
• Bicycles: There are uncovered bicycle racks available near the airport terminal building. Future improvements to the terminal will include covered bicycle accommodations.

Airport facilities

Santa Barbara Municipal Airport (SBA) is located 7 miles west of downtown Santa Barbara, California, near the University of California, Santa Barbara, and the city of Goleta. The airport is a landmark of aviation and architectural history, featuring a red tile roof, dark wood beams, and an old mission garden filled with jasmine and bougainvillea. With over 700,000 passengers annually, the airport offers a flyer-friendly experience with easy access from the terminal to the gate.

Santa Barbara's aviation history dates back to 1914 when Lincoln J. Beachey flew an airplane across Goleta Valley. In 1928, Gordon Sackett and Royce Stetson established a flight school after landing a Hisso-powered airplane in a cow pasture, marking the beginning of what would become the Santa Barbara Municipal Airport. The airport's original Spanish-style terminal building, designed by William Edwards and Joseph Plunkett, was constructed in 1942 during World War II when the airport served as an aviator training base for the U.S. Marines.

The airport has three runways in use: 7/25 and two parallel runways 15/33. The original runway 3/21 was removed due to the development of the University of California, Santa Barbara, and the construction of hangars for the Aero Spacelines Super Guppy. The terminal building has been updated with environmentally sustainable features and includes both short-term and long-term parking options.

Santa Barbara Municipal Airport offers multiple daily nonstop flights to and from various destinations, including LAX, SFO, SEA, PDX, DEN, PHX, DFW, ATL, and SLC. The airport has four jet bridges that can accommodate mainline aircraft, and it is easily accessible by road via State Route 217 or US 101. Taxis and private shuttles are also available from designated zones outside the terminal.

Frequently asked questions