Vista Aviation’s History
Vista Aviation’s history began January 1982 on a part time basis. We started out as a parts and pilot supply shop serving the aircraft community of both Whiteman and San Fernando Airports. The business was started with an initial investment of $7,500 by Brenda Thomas and Dusty Rhodes, co-owners.
They were both working long hours to make this fledgling business a success. Very shortly after opening our doors we saw a demand for avionics repairs. The first shop “bench” was a door nailed to two pieces of wood and the power supply was an aircraft battery. Repairs were limited to unsophisticated radio equipment at that time.
In March of 1983 we were approved as an FAA Repair Station. Maintenance was added in 1986 resulting in a staff of 7. Dusty came on board full time in 1988 and shortly after Vista became a Cessna Service Station with the ability to buy parts and equipment direct from Cessna. In 1990 our flight school Vista Air was established.
Aircraft sales were added next to the full array of services being offered. Avionics has been a major factor for the growth of Vista Aviation with great business relationships established with many manufacturers. The business plan was to eventually move into a large modern facility and diversification was necessary to achieve this goal.
In February 2009 we moved into our brand new 12,000 sq. ft FBO Building and 14,000 sq ft work hangars. This state-of-the-art facility on over 4 acres is also the home of Vista Air Inc. which is our flight school and Specialty Aero Leasing LLC with 35 premier hangars for rent.
Through 35 plus years of business the staff at Vista has continued to offer personalized service to all their customers. This has helped build customer confidence with excellence in maintenance and avionics installations. Vista Aviation has grown from a small single trailer with a few thousand dollars in sales to a multi-million dollar facility with millions in annual sales and some of the highest volume dealerships.
