First Around the World The History of the Santa Monica Municipal Airport

Discover Santa Monica’s remarkable place in aviation history. 

Long before Santa Monica became the city we know today, it caught aviation fever. In 1921, the city was offered a strip of dirt near Ocean Park Boulevard for the Santa Monica Municipal Air Field—and jumped at the opportunity. The land was purchased using California’s first public bond to fund an airport acquisition, setting the stage for Santa Monica to become an important part of American aviation history.

The airport would go on to become home to Douglas Aircraft, at the time the largest airplane manufacturer in the world. It also played a role in some remarkable aviation milestones, including the first round-the-world flight and the first Women’s Air Derby.

Douglas Aircraft remained a major part of Santa Monica for generations before leaving the city in the 1960s. But the airport’s fascinating story—and its influence on the community—continued.

In First Around the World: The History of the Santa Monica Municipal Airport, author Nina Fresco brings that history to life. Drawing on a decade of in-depth research into Santa Monica’s past, Fresco separates fact from local legend while uncovering the people, aircraft, events, and stories that helped shape the airport and the city around it.

For aviation enthusiasts and history buffs alike, First Around the World offers a fascinating look at how one California airport became part of aviation history.