SPA TRIP TO AERO CLUB COMO IN COMO, ITALY In the foothills of the Alps in Northern Italy, Lake Como’s deep blue waters and picturesque villages beckon with the promise of spectacularly beautiful sights, shopping, food, fun—and flying. The flying takes place at Aero Club Como, on Lake Como at the oldest seaplane base in the world (it dates back to 1913).

The first in what we hope will be an annual SPA group seaplane adventure will be a visit to the Lake Como, Italy, region and Aero Club Como. The dates are Saturday, October 1 through Sunday, October 9.

The focus of our trip will be Aero Club Como. Founded in 1930, Aero Club Como is an international seaplane base, flight school, maintenance shop, and social club situated at the foot of the city of Como at the southern tip of one of the most beautiful lakes in the world. The Club has a fleet of seaplanes including a Lake LA4-200EP; Piper Super Cub; Cessna 172, 172XP, 206, and 305 (Birddog); a Republic Seabee undergoing restoration; and the only flying Caproni CA100 biplane. We will begin with a tour of the Aero Club and a presentation and briefing, and then over the next few days fly with Aero Club pilots around the lake and the gorgeous villa-studded towns lining the shoreline. We’ll be splashing down at some of those villages for a leisurely Italian lunch. The Aero Club will waive the required membership fee for SPA members for our flights, and will charge Aero Club-member rates. We’ll also visit Volandia, the local aviation museum, as well as other attractions, and be the guests of honor at a gala Aero Club dinner.

Participants will be responsible for arranging their own transportation (Milan is the closest international airport to Como). SPA has partnered with a travel agency that can arrange accommodations at one of several hotels in the Como area at the best-available rate.

Each participant will pay individually for accommodations, flying, activities and meals so that SPA does not incur any financial liability.

What we need now is an idea of how many people wish to participate in SPA’s Lake Como trip so we can make final arrangements with Aero Club Como, and plan activities and meals.

If you are certain you would like to be part of the Como group, please email Ann Gaines at anng@seaplanes.org. Be sure to specify the number of people in your party.

We will contact those who respond with detailed information about the trip. Thank you, and hope to see you in Como!