Johnson Ranch Airport – Le Grand, California

Johnson Ranch Airport (FAA Identifier: 27CA) is a private-use general aviation facility located in Le Grand, a small rural community in Merced County, California's fertile San Joaquin Valley. Situated at approximately 200 feet above mean sea level, this agricultural airstrip serves as a working hub for the farming operations and rural landowners that define life in this part of the Central Valley. Le Grand itself sits along State Route 99 and State Route 165, making the airport accessible to pilots operating in the broader Merced County region.

The airport occupies a characteristic Central Valley footprint, with a single turf or dirt runway suited to light piston-engine aircraft commonly used in agricultural aviation — including crop dusters, aerial survey platforms, and personal aircraft that allow ranchers and landowners to efficiently manage large land holdings across Merced and Madera counties. The San Joaquin Valley's flat terrain and generally clear summer skies make it well-suited to visual flight rules (VFR) operations, though tule fog during winter months is a well-known hazard requiring instrument proficiency for pilots operating year-round.

Johnson Ranch Airport is classified as a private-use facility, meaning access is restricted to authorized operators and invited guests rather than open to the general transient aviation public. This is consistent with the majority of agricultural airstrips in California's interior valleys, where landowners maintain on-property runways primarily to support farm management, aerial application contracts, and emergency access across large acreages. The airport's FAA identifier 27CA reflects its registration within California's extensive inventory of privately held landing areas, which number in the hundreds across the state.

Le Grand is located approximately 20 miles southeast of Merced and roughly 15 miles northeast of Madera, placing Johnson Ranch Airport within convenient flying distance of Merced Regional Airport (MCE) and Madera Municipal Airport (MAE) — the nearest federally obligated public-use airports offering full services including fuel, maintenance, and instrument approaches. Pilots operating out of Johnson Ranch who need IFR services or commercial-grade avionics support typically position to one of these facilities.

The surrounding agricultural landscape of Merced County is among the most productive in the United States, with almonds, walnuts, sweet potatoes, dairy, and row crops defining the regional economy. Aviation plays a meaningful support role in this environment — aerial application aircraft (commonly called ag planes or air tractors) operate from strips like Johnson Ranch to deliver fertilizers, pesticides, and cover-crop seed across fields that can span thousands of acres. The efficiency gains from aerial application versus ground-based equipment are particularly significant in this part of California, where large contiguous fields and flat topography create ideal conditions for low-altitude agricultural flying.

From a regulatory standpoint, operations at Johnson Ranch Airport fall under FAA oversight as with all civil aviation in the United States, and pilots must comply with applicable FARs regardless of the private-use classification. Aircraft based at the field must maintain current airworthiness certificates, and pilots must hold appropriate certificates and ratings for the operations they conduct. Agricultural operators additionally require FAA commercial pilot certificates with appropriate endorsements when conducting aerial application work for compensation.

The broader Merced County airspace includes the Merced Regional Airport Class D airspace to the northwest, and pilots operating in the Le Grand area should be aware of traffic corridors associated with both MCE and Castle Airport (MER), the former military facility north of Merced that now serves as a general aviation and industrial airpark. Flight planning in this region should account for these controlled airspace boundaries, particularly for pilots climbing to cruise altitude after departure from the Le Grand area.

Johnson Ranch Airport represents the kind of essential but often-overlooked aviation infrastructure that underpins California's agricultural economy — a working airstrip tied directly to land use rather than commercial travel, providing the logistical reach that makes modern large-scale farming operations viable in the San Joaquin Valley.

Johnson Ranch Airport Contact Information

Address, Phone Number, and Hours for an Airports in Le Grand, California.

Name Johnson Ranch Airport
Address 6719 South Minturn Road, Le Grand CA 95333 Map
Phone
Website
Hours

Map of Johnson Ranch Airport


Airports near Le Grand

Frequently Asked Questions – Johnson Ranch Airport (Le Grand, CA)

No. Johnson Ranch Airport (FAA ID: 27CA) is a private-use facility in Le Grand, California. Access is restricted to authorized operators and guests of the property owner. Transient pilots seeking public-access airports in Merced County should use Merced Regional Airport (MCE), located approximately 20 miles to the northwest, or Madera Municipal Airport (MAE), roughly 20 miles to the south.

Johnson Ranch Airport primarily serves light general aviation and agricultural aviation aircraft. This includes single-engine piston planes used for personal and ranch-management flying, as well as aerial application aircraft — commonly Air Tractor or Grumman Ag Cat models — used for crop dusting and aerial seeding across the surrounding Merced County farmland. The airstrip's turf or unpaved surface limits it to lighter aircraft with appropriate landing gear.

Le Grand sits in the San Joaquin Valley, which offers excellent VFR flying conditions during spring, summer, and fall — typically clear skies, light winds, and long daylight hours. However, winter months bring tule fog, a dense radiation fog that can reduce visibility to near zero for days at a time across the entire valley floor. Pilots operating from Johnson Ranch Airport year-round should be instrument-rated or plan operations carefully around fog advisories issued by the National Weather Service for the Merced and Fresno areas.

The nearest public-use airports with full services — including Avgas and Jet-A fuel, maintenance facilities, and instrument approaches — are Merced Regional Airport (MCE) approximately 20 miles northwest of Le Grand, and Madera Municipal Airport (MAE) about 20 miles to the south. For commercial airline service, the closest options are Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT), roughly 45 miles southeast, and Modesto City-County Airport (MOD), approximately 50 miles north.

Agricultural airstrips like Johnson Ranch Airport are integral to large-scale farming in Merced County's San Joaquin Valley. Aerial application pilots use on-property strips to load and take off multiple times per day during spray or seeding operations, dramatically reducing turnaround time compared to driving to a distant airport. Crops including almonds, walnuts, row vegetables, and cotton in the Le Grand area benefit from aerial treatment for pest control, frost protection, and fertilizer application. Having an on-property strip allows ranch managers to respond rapidly to pest outbreaks or weather windows critical to crop health.

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