🇺🇸 Zamperini Field

Zamperini Field (KTOA (TOA)) is a public general aviation airport located three miles (5 km) southwest of downtown Torrance, in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is also classified by the FAA as a Regional Reliever airport, primarily serving private aircraft.

The airport covers 506 acres (205 ha) and features two asphalt/concrete runways:

• 11L/29R, measuring 5,000 x 150 ft (1,524 x 46 m)
• 11R/29L, measuring 3,000 x 75 ft (914 x 23 m)

There is also one asphalt helipad, 110 x 110 ft (34 x 34 m).

Zamperini Field is used for general aviation, including flight instruction, aircraft repair, and charter flights offered by several Fixed Base Operators (FBOs). It serves as the headquarters for Robinson Helicopters, the largest manufacturer of private helicopters in the United States, with its production, assembly, and testing facilities on the airfield. The airport also houses the Western Museum of Flight, various flying clubs, and Civil Air Patrol squadrons.

Historically, the airport was completed by the United States Army Air Forces on March 31, 1943, as Lomita Flight Strip, serving as an emergency landing field and training facility for P-38 and P-51 fighter pilots during World War II. After the war, it provided temporary housing for Japanese-Americans returning from internment camps. The facility was renamed Zamperini Field on December 7, 1946, in honor of local sports and World War II hero Louis Zamperini.