Peace River Airport is a municipally owned airport located west of the Town of

Peace River The Peace River (french: links=no, rivière de la Paix) is a river in Canada that originates in the Rocky Mountains of northern British Columbia and flows to the northeast through northern Alberta. The Peace River joins the Athabasca River in th ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. The airport has one runway, which is , and a terminal building, which is . Northern Air is based at the airport and provides scheduled service to Edmonton, in addition to charters and air ambulance. The airport was the hub of

Peace Air Peace Air was a Canadian regional airline that flew to destinations within the Canadian province of Alberta and to two destinations in eastern British Columbia. It covered niche markets including scheduled flights to smaller communities, freight a ...

until the airline ceased operations in May 2007.

History

The first airport in the area was located on the west bank of the

, about south of the present town site. The site was abandoned when one of

Grant McConachie George William Grant McConachie (24 April 1909 – 29 June 1965) was a Canadian bush pilot and businessman who became CEO of Canadian Pacific Airlines (CPA). He was born in Hamilton, Ontario, and grew up in Calder, Alberta. He developed an ...

's pilots had a near fatal accident on landing a United Air Transport Limited airline, which was headquartered at the Edmonton Municipal Airport. Historical records indicate that the present site (NW Section 29, Township 83, Range 22, West of the 5th Meridian) was picked by the famous

Wop May Wilfrid Reid "Wop" May, (March 20, 1896 – June 21, 1952) was a Canadian flying ace in the First World War and a leading post-war aviator. He was the final Allied pilot to be pursued by Manfred von Richthofen before the German ace was shot down ...

. Originally the airport had three runways: 04/22, 08/26 and 18/36. Of the three runways shown by the original configuration, one is still operating: 04/22. In the fall of 1942 an American Corps of engineers extended the 04/22 runway by a further . A weather station was also added by the American Government, likely as part of the Alaska Highway effort. On May 28, 29 of 1949 the Peace River Airport hosted to one of the first airshows in the region. The Air Cadets of the region played host to the R.C.A.F., who brought with them a helicopter, two Harvard trainers, an Avro Anson, and a Beech Expeditor out of which two parachutists jumped. In June 1960 the Peace River Airport closed in order to complete extensive construction. The runway was paved and an air terminal was built. Peace River Airport re-opened its runway for major airline service in January 1961. The official opening was held August 9, 1961. This date marked the signing of a long term lease (40 years) between the Department of Transport and the Town of Peace River whereby the Town, with subsidization from Transport Canada, would operate the airport. During 1964 the first Flight Service Specialists were hired to staff the radio at the Peace River Airport. Prior to this, the pilots spoke to the radio operated by the Weather Office at the airport. Even before the Weather Office, the agents of Pacific Western Airlines and Canadian Pacific Airlines had a radio in their homes which they used to communicate with the pilots. PWA did build a small radio shack for their agent. A new terminal building was opened September 8, 1984. The estimated cost of construction being 4.5 million Heritage Fund dollars. The Town of Peace River purchased the airport from Transport Canada in 1996 following the National Airports Policy.

Contemporary issues

The Peace River Airport Steering Committee has been set up to assess viability and regionalization potential of the airport. The committee has representatives from The Town of Peace River,

Northern Sunrise County Northern Sunrise County is a municipal district in northern Alberta, Canada. Located in Census Division 17, its municipal office is located east of the Town of Peace River The Peace River (french: links=no, rivière de la Paix) is a river ...

Municipal District of Peace No. 135 The Municipal District of Peace No. 135 is a List of municipal districts in Alberta, municipal district (MD) in northwestern Alberta, Canada. Located in Division No. 19, Alberta, Census Division No. 19, its List of municipal districts in Albert ...

County of Northern Lights The County of Northern Lights is a municipal district in northwest Alberta, Canada. Located in Census Division 17, its municipal office is located in the Town of Manning. The municipality recently changed its name from the ''Municipal Distr ...

and the Town of Grimshaw, and is working on a business plan. The long runway 04/22 would be able to accommodate a

Boeing 737-600 The Boeing 737 Next Generation, commonly abbreviated as 737NG, or 737 Next Gen, is a narrow-body aircraft powered by two jet engines and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Launched in 1993 as the third generation derivative of the Boeing ...

, 737-700 and 737-800 equipped with a short-field design package. Any further extensions to the runway, to enable handling larger aircraft, would have to contend with either Strong Creek's ravine to the west or Highway 2 on the opposite side of the runway. A tributary of St. Germaine Creek cuts a ravine just to the east of the airport.

Airlines and destinations

References

External links

*Town of Peace River
Peace River Airport
*
Place to Fly
on COPA's ''Places to Fly'' airport directory {{authority control Certified airports in Alberta Municipal District of Peace No. 135