Charlottetown Airport
Encyclopedia
Charlottetown Airport, , is located 3 NM north of Charlottetown
Charlottetown
Charlottetown is a Canadian city. It is both the largest city on and the provincial capital of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County. Named after Queen Charlotte, the wife of George III, Charlottetown was first incorporated as a town in 1855 and designated as a city in 1885...

, Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. The airport is currently run by the Charlottetown Airport Authority, is owned by Transport Canada
Transport Canada
Transport Canada is the department within the government of Canada which is responsible for developing regulations, policies and services of transportation in Canada. It is part of the Transportation, Infrastructure and Communities portfolio...

 and forms part of the National Airports System
National Airports System (Canada)
Canada's National Airport System was defined in the National Airports Policy published in 1994. It was intended to include all airports with an annual traffic of 200,000 passengers or more, as well as airports serving the national, provincial and territorial capitals.Any airport sustaining an...

.

The airport is classified as an airport of entry
Airport of Entry
An airport of entry is an airport that provides customs and immigration services for incoming flights. These services allow the airport to serve as an initial port of entry for foreign visitors arriving in a country.-Africa:-Americas:-Asia:...

 by NAV CANADA
NAV CANADA
Nav Canada is a privately run, not-for-profit corporation that owns and operates Canada's civil air navigation system .The company employs approximately 2,000 air traffic controllers , 800 flight service specialists and 700 technologists...

 and is staffed by the Canada Border Services Agency
Canada Border Services Agency
The Canada Border Services Agency is a federal law enforcement agency that is responsible for border enforcement, immigration enforcement and customs services....

. CBSA officers at this airport currently can handle aircraft with no more than 60 passengers or 368 if off-loaded in stages.

Upton Field

The first aircraft to operate in the Charlottetown area was one that landed at the exhibition grounds
Charlottetown Driving Park
The Charlottetown Driving Park , located in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada is a harness racing track for racing standardbred horses.-History:...

 east of the city's central business district in 1912; it was not 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 (853.4 m) and 1600 ft (487.7 m) respectively, opening on January 16, 1932. Upton was a farming community located in the western part of Queens Royalty
Queens Royalty, Prince Edward Island
Queens Royalty is the royalty for Queens County, Prince Edward Island, Canada.The township was established as part of the colonial survey of 1764 undertaken by Capt. Samuel J. Holland. It was intended to host the colonial capital of Prince Edward Island and [county seat] of Queens County,...

, 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 300 acres (1.2 km²) property east of Sherwood Station
Sherwood, Prince Edward Island
Sherwood is a neighbourhood of the city of Charlottetown in central Queens County, Prince Edward Island, Canada.Sherwood is centrally located in Charlottetown on the border of Queens Royalty and the township of Lot 33....

 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 offered the airport to the federal government for military use through the duration of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. The Royal Canadian Air Force
Royal Canadian Air Force
The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...

 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
British Commonwealth Air Training Plan
The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan , known in some countries as the Empire Air Training Scheme , was a massive, joint military aircrew training program created by the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, during the Second World War...

 aerodromes across Canada. The Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...

 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 saw extensive service during the 1960s-1990s from both Air Canada
Air Canada
Air Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 178 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth largest passenger airline by number of destinations, and the airline is a...

 and Eastern Provincial Airways
Eastern Provincial Airways
Eastern Provincial Airways traces its history from Maritime Central Airways from 1961 and merged with CP Air to form Canadian Pacific Airlines in 1986.EPA, as it was known, was the backbone of air travel in Eastern Canada in the 1970s...

 to destinations in Atlantic and Central Canada. Following EPA's sale and merger with CP Air, Charlottetown Airport saw direct CP Air service from Central Canada for several years, continued by Canadian. The creation of Air Canada subsidiary Air Nova
Air Nova
Air Nova was an airline based in Enfield, Nova Scotia, Canada that became part of Air Canada Regional in 2001. In 2002 the merger of Air BC, Air Ontario, Air Nova and Canadian Regional Airlines was finalised with the launch of a new name and brand-Air Canada Jazz.- History :Air Nova was...

 and Canadian subsidiary Air Atlantic
Air Atlantic
Air Atlantic was a Canadian airline, operating a fleet of BAe 146-200, BAe 4100 and Dash 8-100 aircraft. The airline also operated Dash 7 aircraft at the inception while waiting for their first Dash 8's. The Airline was an Atlantic Provinces feeder airline for Canadian Pacific Airlines, then...

 saw the beginning of a downgrade in direct service by the major carriers from Central Canada and an increase in service from hub airports such as Halifax and Moncton.

The opening of the Confederation Bridge
Confederation Bridge
The Confederation Bridge is a bridge spanning the Abegweit Passage of Northumberland Strait, linking Prince Edward Island with mainland New Brunswick, Canada. It was commonly referred to as the "Fixed Link" by residents of Prince Edward Island prior to its official naming. Construction took place...

 in 1997 coupled with capacity improvements at Moncton and Halifax airports saw many changes to air traffic through Charlottetown.

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 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
Air Canada
Air Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 178 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth largest passenger airline by number of destinations, and the airline is a...

 introduced non-stop flights to Montreal-Trudeau Airport from Charlottetown after the acquisition of Canadian Airlines
Canadian Airlines
Canadian Airlines International Ltd. was a Canadian airline that operated from 1987 until 2001. The airline was Canada's second largest airline after Air Canada, and carried more than 11.9 million passengers to over 160 destinations in 17 countries on five continents at its height in 1996...

. Later, JetsGo
Jetsgo
Jetsgo Corporation was a Canadian low-cost carrier based in the Saint-Laurent area of Montreal. Jetsgo served 19 destinations across Canada, 10 destinations in the United States, and 12 scheduled weekend-charter destinations in the Caribbean...

, 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
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...

 had added flights to Charlottetown from New York. As well, work has been completed to expand the main terminal's apron to accommodate more scheduled flights on the ground at the same time.

In 2008, the airport set an all-time passenger record with 282,385 passengers using the airport, a near 80% increase over 2002.

Airlines and destinations

External links

  • Charlottetown Airport website
  • Page about this airport on COPA's
    Canadian Owners and Pilots Association
    The Canadian Owners and Pilots Association is a federally registered not-for-profit association that provides information and advocacy services for Canadian pilots who fly for non-commercial purposes...

    Places to Fly airport directory
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