Montréal Saint-Hubert Longueuil Airport (french: Aéroport Montréal Saint-Hubert Longueuil), also called Montréal/Saint-Hubert Airport, is located in the Saint-Hubert borough of

Longueuil Longueuil () is a city in the province of Quebec, Canada. It is the seat of the Montérégie administrative region and the central city of the urban agglomeration of Longueuil. It sits on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River directly ac ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirte ...

. The airport is located east of

Downtown Montreal Downtown Montreal (French: ''Centre-Ville de Montréal'') is the central business district of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The district is situated on the southernmost slope of Mount Royal, and occupies the western portion of the borough of Ville ...

and east of Longueuil. As of 2017, it is ranked as Canada's 15th busiest airport by aircraft movements. This airport mainly serves travellers to Quebec destinations. The airport is classified as an

airport of entry In general, a port of entry (POE) is a place where one may lawfully enter a country. It typically has border security staff and facilities to check passports and visas and to inspect luggage to assure that contraband is not imported. Internat ...

Nav Canada Nav Canada (styled as NAV CANADA) is a privately run, not-for-profit corporation that owns and operates Canada's civil air navigation system (ANS). It was established in accordance with the ''Civil Air Navigation Services Commercialization Act ...

and is staffed by the

Canada Border Services Agency The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA; french: Agence des services frontaliers du Canada, ''ASFC'') is a federal law enforcement agency that is responsible for border control (i.e. protection and surveillance), immigration enforcement, and c ...

(CBSA) on a call-out basis from the Mirabel Airport. CBSA officers at this airport can handle

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...

aircraft only, with no more than 15 passengers.

History

In operation since 1928, it was Montreal's first and only airport until the construction of Montréal/Dorval International Airport (now Montréal–Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport). On 1 August 1930, the R100 airship arrived after what was possibly the first non-stop passenger-carrying powered

flight Flight or flying is the process by which an object moves through a space without contacting any planetary surface, either within an atmosphere (i.e. air flight or aviation) or through the vacuum of outer space (i.e. spaceflight). This can be a ...

across the

North Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe a ...

to land in Canada.Photo Essay Collection The R.100 in Canada
/ref> In the late 1930s the airport was used by Canadian Associated Aircraft to build the

Handley Page Hampden The Handley Page HP.52 Hampden is a British twin-engine medium bomber that was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was part of the trio of large twin-engine bombers procured for the RAF, joining the Armstrong Whitworth Whitley and Vickers ...

The airport was divided into two sides, a

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

side along with the

Pratt & Whitney Canada Pratt & Whitney Canada (PWC or P&WC) is a Canada-based aircraft engine manufacturer. PWC's headquarters are in Longueuil, Quebec, just outside Montreal. It is a division of the larger US-based Pratt & Whitney (P&W), itself a business unit of ...

facility (facing runway 06L/24R) and a civilian side (facing runway 06R/24L). Today the military base, the former RCAF Station St Hubert, has ceased operations, but the

Armed Forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

still use the base as a garrison comprising the tactical helicopter unit,

438 Squadron 438 "City of Montreal" Tactical Helicopter Squadron (French: ) is a unit of the Royal Canadian Air Force. The squadron operates the CH-146 Griffon tactical helicopter from the Hartland de Montarville Molson Hangar of CFB St. Hubert in Quebec, Ca ...

, 34

Service Battalion A service battalion (Svc Bn; or ) is a unit of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) that provides combat service support to a brigade group and its elements. It is able to fight in a defensive role as well as provide the vital logistical support to su ...

and 34 Canadian Brigade Group Headquarters. The ex-Pratt & Whitney hangar is owned and operated since 2012 as the largest FBO on the airport by an AvJet branded dealer: CYHU H-18 Services Inc. Their hangar is the newest addition to the FBO network : HUB FBO. Following the new National Airports Policy announced by

Transport Canada Transport Canada (french: Transports Canada) is the department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, policies and services of road, rail, marine and air transportation in Canada. It is part of the Transporta ...

in 1994, ownership of the airport was transferred to a private corporation, ''Développement de l'aéroport Saint-Hubert de Longueuil'' (DASH-L), on 1 September 2004. It was here that the body of Quebec

Minister of Labour Minister of Labour (in British English) or Labor (in American English) is typically a cabinet-level position with portfolio responsibility for setting national labour standards, labour dispute mechanisms, employment, workforce participation, traini ...

and

Deputy Premier A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

Pierre Laporte Pierre Laporte (25 February 1921 – 17 October 1970) was a Canadian lawyer, journalist and politician. He was deputy premier of the province of Quebec when he was kidnapped and murdered by members of the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ ...

, was found during the

October Crisis The October Crisis (french: Crise d'Octobre) refers to a chain of events that started in October 1970 when members of the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) kidnapped the provincial Labour Minister Pierre Laporte and British diplomat James Cr ...

of 1970.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Crashes

* On March 17, 2017, about 13:00 EDT (17:00 UTC), a midair collision occurred on the southeastern side of the airport, over the city of

Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville is an off-island suburb of Montreal, in southwestern Quebec, Canada, on the south bank of the Saint Lawrence River just east of Montreal. It lies on the west flank of Mont Saint-Bruno, one of the Monteregian Hills. Th ...

. The two planes collided at an approximate altitude of over the Promenades Saint-Bruno, both aircraft were

Cessna 152 The Cessna 152 is an American two-seat, fixed- tricycle-gear, general aviation airplane, used primarily for flight training and personal use. It was based on the earlier Cessna 150 incorporating a number of minor design changes and a slightly ...

, owned by Cargair, a flight training school. One plane crashed on the rooftop of the shopping mall, injuring the pilot. The other crashed in the parking lot, killing the pilot. The owner of Cargair indicated that both pilots involved in the crash were from China.

References

Bibliography

* Jesse, William. "Breaking New Ground: The Canadian Government's First Civil Aerodrome". ''Air Enthusiast'', No. 55, Autumn 1994, pp. 14–15.

External links

Official site (French & English)Page about this airport
on COPA's ''Places to Fly'' airport directory {{DEFAULTSORT:Montreal St Hubert Airport Airports of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan Transport in Longueuil Buildings and structures in Longueuil Certified airports in Montérégie 1928 establishments in Quebec Airports established in 1928