When Dave Ford of Oceanside says, “Lets do lunch,” he isn’t always alluding to something as simple as grabbing a sandwich at a neighborhood café and then parting ways by car. Instead, he could very well have his sights set on hopping into a single-engine, four-seater airplane and flying from Palomar Airport to, perhaps, Catalina Island for what’s known as “the $100 hamburger.”

Ford is among 80 general aviation and commercial pilots who belong to the flying group Unusual Attitudes, which is comprised mostly of gay men who sail the skies each month to various cities, mainly in Southern California, for leisurely lunches with other members and their passengers.

The group was founded in 1991 in Los Angeles, and in the mid ’90s absorbed into its membership the San Diego gay pilot’s group, known then as Alternate Routes. Ford joined Unusual Attitudes in 1999, long after obtaining his pilot’s license in 1983, and has since taken numerous day flights to lunch with fellow members at retro diners and upscale restaurants in places such as Santa Barbara, Palm Springs, Newport Beach, Big Bear and Las Vegas.

“There are a lot of unique airport restaurants we visit,” he says, citing one of the group’s favorites – the Buffalo Spring Station at the Catalina Airport, where he flew this month during the group’s July gathering. “It’s very casual, with a patio, and they serve buffalo burgers, which a lot of folks in the group opt for. It’s ironic that there are actually buffalo on the island,” he quips.

What might seem more adventurous to some than flying in bad weather is eating lunch at Typhoon at Santa Monica’s airport. In addition to the usual Asian fare, the upscale eatery also serves crickets, spiders and other savory insects, Ford says.

“I tried the crickets once. They were sautéed and served with dried noodles and kind of salty. It was an usual experience,” he says. “I wouldn’t try them again.”

Of the “$100 hamburger,” Ford explains that it’s a common catch phrase used within the aviation community because of the money members plunk down for hourly rates to operate the planes. Ford, who’s flown about 800 hours to date, says the divided cost for flying three passengers roundtrip to Santa Barbara for an afternoon could run as high as $80 apiece. On shorter flights to destinations like Catalina, however, the cost decreases to about $40 per person.

Yet some members, like Cole Kolbert of Bay Park, hop into their own planes for the lunches. Since purchasing a Grumman Tiger single-engine airplane four years ago, his domestic partner, Steve Haight, now shares in the flying after he obtained his pilot’s license earlier this year.

“Part of the appeal for us is going to different locations and meeting other gay people with aviation interests,” says Kolbert. “I like Catalina for the buffalo burgers, but for very good dining my favorite is Matthews at the airport in Paso Robles. It has a view of the runway, good food and a nice selection of local wines, which I enjoy when we stay overnight.”

Kolbert adds that many of the restaurants they fly to for the monthly lunches “are diner-style and still look how they did when they opened 20 or 30 years ago.”

Most of the restaurants also boast an aviation theme and have views of the runways, including the 94th Aero Squadron restaurant at San Diego’s Montgomery Field. When the group meets there, Ford says he typically drives, although admits with a chuckle to having flown the very short distance once from Palomar.

Among the exceptions in terms of restaurants that cater to a largely mainstream flying community is the new Hamburger Mary’s in Newport Beach, where Ford flew recently to join the group for dinner.

“Normally, in the general pilot environment it’s a very straight male group,” he says. “The lunches build camaraderie and a club sense of the group. Getting together with the other members alleviates the pressure of being gay in a straight world. And even though the lunches are strictly social, we’ll discuss proficiency maneuvers and instrument practices, so it’s kind of a support group for everyone.”

For more information about the Unusual Attitudes flying group, visit its Web site at www.unusualattitudes.org.