A C172 SINGLE PLT VIOLATED THE NFG MIL TWR'S AIRSPACE.

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A FRIEND CALLED ME UP AND ASKED IF I COULD MAKE A FLT FROM SNA TO MYF; CRQ AND BACK. HE HAS A TYPICAL ANTIQUE (25+ YRS OLD) C172 THAT HE SHOWED ME THE DAY BEFORE THE FLT. HE WARNED ME THAT THE NAV SYS WERE A LITTLE QUIRKY; BEING THAT THE #1 VOR DIDN'T WORK; BUT IT WAS FINE IF TUNED IN TO AN ILS. HE SAID THE #2 VOR WORKED FINE. I WASN'T WORRIED BECAUSE I HAD MY HANDHELD GPS I WOULD BRING ALONG AS A BACKUP. I OBTAINED AN OUTLOOK BRIEFING THE MORNING OF THE DAY OF THE FLT; WHICH WASN'T TO BE UNTIL THE AFTERNOON. IT LOOKED LIKE IT WAS GOING TO BE IFR; WHICH CONCERNED ME DUE TO THE SO-SO NAV SYS AND MY UNFAMILIARITY WITH THE PLANE. I MADE THE FLT PLANS FOR BOTH IFR AND VFR DEPENDING ON THE CONDITIONS AT THE TIME OF THE FLT. LUCKILY; IT ENDED UP BEING VFR WHEN I DEPARTED SNA. APPROX 10 MINS INTO THE FLT; I DISCOVERED THAT NEITHER VOR WAS WORKING. BECAUSE IT WAS VFR AND I HAD MY GPS; I DECIDED TO CONTINUE ON. I LANDED AT MYF WITH NO PROBS; MADE MY PICKUP AND PROCEEDED TO CRQ. I PLANNED ON TRANSITIONING THROUGH MIRAMAR'S AIRSPACE AND WAS HANDED OFF TO MIRAMAR TWR. 1/2 WAY THROUGH MY CALL-UP; THE RADIO WENT OUT. I TRIED SEVERAL TIMES ON BOTH RADIOS AND SWITCHED TO THE PAX SIDE RADIO JACKS; BUT NOTHING. I MADE A 180 DEG TURN TO STAY CLR OF MIRAMAR'S AIRSPACE AND SWITCHED TO MY HANDHELD TRANSCEIVER. I DECIDED NOT TO TRY TO TRANSITION THROUGH MIL AND SAN DIEGO'S CLASS B AIRSPACE WITH A HANDHELD; SO I HEADED TO THE COASTLINE. RIGHT ABOUT THE TIME I REACHED THE COAST; MY TRUSTY GPS INFORMED ME THAT IT HAD LOST ALL SATELLITE SIGNALS. SO NOW; I HAVE NO COM SYS EXCEPT FOR MY HANDHELD; NO NAV SYS AND IT IS BECOMING MVFR. I PREACH THE EVILS OF 'GET THEREITIS' TO MY STUDENTS AND HOW SEVERAL LITTLE THINGS EVENTUALLY LEAD TO A BIG THING; AND ALL THAT WAS GOING THROUGH MY HEAD DURING THIS TIME. I EVALUATED MY SIT WHICH WAS NOT AN EMER; BUT MORE OF A MAJOR INCONVENIENCE. A CHK OF ALL MY SYS CONFIRMED NO VACUUM PUMP OR ALTERNATOR FAILURE AND ELECTRICAL WAS GOOD EXCEPT FOR THE COM AND NAV SYS. SQUAWKING 1200; I HEADED UP THE COASTLINE STAYING CLR OF CLASS B AND OBTAINED THE ATIS AT CRQ. USING MY RUSTY PILOTAGE AND DEAD RECKONING SKILLS; I FIGURED I COULD FIND CRQ WHICH IS VISIBLE FROM THE COASTLINE; MAKE MY PICKUP THERE AND HEAD ON HOME. I EVENTUALLY SAW THE RWY MATCHING THE POS ON MY TERMINAL CHART. I CALLED UP CRQ TWR; EXPLAINED MY LOST NAV AND TOLD THEM I WAS AT THE SHORELINE ABEAM WHAT I BELIEVED WAS THEIR ARPT AND REQUESTED TO LAND. THE TWR ASKED ME TO IDENT; WHICH I DID; AND THEY CONFIRMED MY LOCATION AT THE SHORELINE AND CLRED ME FOR R TFC RWY 24 AND TO RPT DOWNWIND. I HEADED INLAND; BUT FELT UNEASY WITH THE MVFR. I HADN'T BEEN TO CRQ IN A YR OR SO AND LOOKING AT THE ARPT FROM THE SHORELINE; IT DIDN'T LOOK FAMILIAR. BUT TWR HAD CONFIRMED MY LOCATION SO I CONTINUED ON. I HAD PREVIOUSLY WRITTEN THE RWY NUMBERS FOR CRQ ON MY CHART DURING MY FLT PLANNING. I KNEW THAT THE APCH END OF RWY 6 WOULD BE MY FIRST POSITIVE CONFIRMATION OF THE ARPT. AS I STARTED TO FOCUS THROUGH THE HAZE AND SCATTERED CLOUDS ON THE NUMBER PAINTED ON THE RWY; I SOON REALIZED IT WAS A 3; NOT A 6. ALMOST AT THE SAME TIME; I NOTICED A CH-47 HELI HOVERING MID-FIELD. AS MY MIND STARTED TO PROCESS THIS INFO; I LOOKED UP AND SAW 2 F18'S IN FORMATION APCHING FROM MY R. I QUICKLY DEDUCED THAT I WAS NOT AT CRQ; BUT IN THE MIDDLE OF CAMP PENDLETON'S RESTR AND HOT AIRSPACE! I MADE THE STEEPEST BANKED U-TURN I HAVE EVER MADE AND FLOORED IT TOWARD HAWAII. I ADVISED CRQ TWR OF THIS LITTLE ERROR AND TOLD THEM I WOULDN'T BE NEEDING THEIR SVCS ANYMORE AND WOULDN'T BE LNDG AT THEIR ARPT. I SMACKED MYSELF FOR TRUSTING SOMEONE ELSE AND NOT MY INSTINCTS. I CONTACTED SOCAL APCH AND ADVISED THEM OF MY SIT AND LOCATION AND THEY CONFIRMED I WAS IN A HOT AREA AND CONTINUED MY HEADING OUT TO SEA. THEY WERE A GREAT HELP VECTORING ME AROUND THE RESTR AND MOA AIRSPACE AND FINALLY HANDED ME OFF TO SNA TWR. I LANDED JUST AS THE MARINE LAYER WAS STARTING ITS AFTERNOON ROLL AND IFR SET IN. AS I EVALUATED MY FLT AND MYSELF AFTER LNDG; IT SEEMS THAT I HAD BEEN SO DISTR TRYING TO FIX MY MYRIAD OF PROBS THAT THIS; COMBINED WITH THE MVFR; CAUSED ME TO MISS SEEING CRQ AND NOT REALIZE HOW MUCH TIME HAD LAPSED INFLT. THIS ALLOWED ME TO FLY INTO RESTR AIRSPACE THAT WAS 15-20 MI BEYOND WHERE I THOUGHT I WAS. I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT I WASN'T SHOT DOWN OR AT LEAST INTERCEPTED. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I HAVE EVER NEEDED TO COMPLETE A NASA FORM AND IT BETTER BE THE LAST. IT GOES TO THE OLD ADAGE THAT SEVERAL SMALL PROBS CAN LEAD TO A BIG ONE. EVEN IF IT DOESN'T RESULT IN SAFETY PROBS WITH THE ACFT ITSELF; IT CAN STILL BECOME A MAJOR FLT PROB THAT JEOPARDIZES YOUR SAFETY. NEVER AGAIN WILL I FLY A MARGINAL AIRPLANE IN MARGINAL CONDITIONS.