Potential Airport Closure Looms Over School Founded in 1996 Proteus Flight School has trained thousands of pilots at Santa Monica Airport, outlasting competitors and weathering regulatory shifts that shuttered other operators at the field. But its future is uncertain now as closure of the airport hangs in the balance. Founded in 1996 at 3025 Airport Ave., Proteus is the oldest continuously operating flight school at the airport. It has since expanded to a primary location at 2501 Airport Ave. and a maintenance and instruction hangar at 3147 Donald Douglas Loop South. The school’s database includes nearly 3,000 people who have trained there at some point in their aviation careers.
