Everything about Charlottetown Airport totally explained
For the airport in Newfoundland and Labrador see Charlottetown Airport
Charlottetown Airport,, is located north of
Charlottetown,
Prince Edward Island,
Canada. The airport is currently run by the
Charlottetown Airport Authority, is owned by
Transport Canada and forms part of the
National Airports System.
The airport is classifed as an
airport of entry by
NAV CANADA and is staffed by the
Canada Border Services Agency. CBSA officers at this airport currently can handle aircraft with no more than 60 passengers.
History
Upton Field
The first aircraft to operate in the Charlottetown area was one that landed at the
exhibition grounds east of the city's central business district in 1912; it wasn't until 1931 that a permanent airfield was built. The first facility was known as Upton Field (later Upton Airport) and consisted of two turf runways 2800
ft. and respectively, opening on
January 16,
1932. Upton was a farming community located in the western part of
Queens Royalty, northwest of the city proper. The airfield was leased to
Canadian Airways Limited from
October 9,
1932 to
October 9,
1938, although the airfield was only licensed until
June 30,
1938. Throughout this time, Upton Airport received the first air mail service in Canada. Today the site is farmland and trees, and local residents are opposed to a proposed plan to develop the residential subdivisions in the area.
It is a popular area for the walking of dogs, hiking, cross country skiing, and other recreational activities.
Municipal ownership and operation
In June 1938 the city government asked the
Department of Transport to assist in the development of an expanded municipal airport. Upton Airport was considered a candidate, as was a property east of
Sherwood Station on the Brackley Point Road. Upton Airport was rejected due to lack of space and the Sherwood Station property in the central part of Charlottetown Royalty was purchased by the city government for $30,000. The provincial government contributed 50% to the development of the new airport in exchange for 50% of its profits while the city would operate it.
Military operation
In December 1939 the city government offerred the airport to the federal government for military use through the duration of
World War II. The
Royal Canadian Air Force expanded the airport and enlarged the runways in preparation for using the airport to train pilots and aircrew. The runways were altered into a classic triangle configuration seen with most
British Commonwealth Air Training Plan aerodromes across Canada. The
Royal Air Force used the airfield from
June 15,
1941 until February 1944 during which time it was known as
RAF Station Charlottetown. Following the departure of the RAF, the RCAF established training units at the airfield, which was renamed
RCAF Station Charlottetown.
Federal ownership and operation
Following the end of World War II, the military presence at the airport diminished by late 1945 and the base was decommissioned and transferred from the RCAF to the federal
Department of Transport on
February 1,
1946, returning the airfield to civilian use.
Several expansions were subsequently undertaken, including an enlarged civilian air terminal off the Brackley Point Road on the west side of the airfield, as well as a lengthening and realigning of what would become runway 03/21 during the 1960s-1970s to accommodate jet aircraft. A major expansion during the 1980s saw the old terminal become a general aviation facility after a new terminal, control tower and emergency services building were constructed further to the north from a continuation of the Sherwood Road. This also saw runway 03/21 lengthened to its current configuration.
Charlottetown Airport Authority
On
February 28,
1999 the Department of Transport transferred operational and financial responsibility for the Charlottetown Airport to the
Charlottetown Airport Authority Inc. under a 60-year lease arrangement; the federal government through DOT remains the owner of the property.
Since the turn of the millennium, and especially since the mid-2000s, Charlottetown Airport has seen a great increase in flights. The trend started when
Air Canada introduced non-stop flights to
Montreal-Trudeau Airport from Charlottetown after the acquisition of
Canadian Airlines. Later,
JetsGo, a now defunct low-cost Canadian carrier, also introduced non-stop flights to Charlottetown in early 2003. The flights didn't last long, as JetsGo declared bankruptcy and shut down in March 2005.
With the recent completion of a $2.1 million expansion that includes customs facilities,
Delta Air Lines has added flights to Charlottetown from
Boston and
New York (new in 2008), while
Northwest Airlines added service to
Detroit. Both services to the U.S. will return in the summer of 2008.
As well, work is being done to expand the main terminal's apron to accommodate more scheduled flights on the ground at the same time. This should be complete by July 1,2008.
In 2007, the airport broke its passenger record from 2006 with 253,224 passengers using the airport, a more than 60% increase over 2002.
Airlines and destinations
Further Information
Get more info on 'Charlottetown Airport'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://charlottetown_airport.totallyexplained.com">Charlottetown Airport Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
