Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport

Ottawa/Macdonald-Cartier International Airport or Macdonald-Cartier International Airport (L'aéroport international Macdonald-Cartier in French), (IATA: YOW, ICAO: CYOW) in Riverside South, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada is named for Sirs John A. Macdonald and George-Étienne Cartier. located 5.5 NM (10.2 km/6.3 mi) south of the city centre, it is Canada's 6th busiest airport by airline passenger traffic, and the 10th busiest by aircraft movements, with 4,092,458 passengers^[4] and 165,768 movements in 2007.^[3] It is also an Air Canada Jazz and Air Canada focus city and the home base for First Air. As of July 2008^[update], Ottawa overtook Halifax Stanfield International Airport to become the fastest growing of all Canada's major airports.^[5]

It was formerly known as CFB Ottawa South/CFB Uplands.

The airport is classified 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 165 passengers, unless the passengers are disembarked in stages.

Ottawa International Airport is one of eight Canadian airports that has US Border pre-clearance facilities.

History

The airport was originally opened at Uplands on a high plateau (then) south of Ottawa by the Ottawa Flying Club, which still operates from the field. During World War II, when it was known as Uplands, the airport hosted No. 2 Service Flying Training School for the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, providing advanced pilot training in Harvard and Yale aircraft.

During the 1950s, while the airport was still named Uplands and a joint-use civilian/military field, it was the busiest airport in Canada by takeoffs and landings, reaching a peak of 307,079 aircraft movements in 1959,^[6] more than double its current traffic. At the time, the airport had scheduled airline flights by Trans-Canada Air Lines (Toronto, Montreal, and Val d'Or), Trans Air (Churchill), and Eastern Air Lines (New York via Syracuse and Washington via Montreal).^[6] With the arrival of civilian jet travel, the Canadian government built a new field south of the original one, with two much longer runways and a new terminal building designed to handle up to 900,000 passengers/year. The terminal building was originally scheduled to open in 1959, but during practices for the opening ceremonies, a United States Air Force F-104 Starfighter accidentally went supersonic during a low pass over the airport, and the resultant boom shattered most of the glass in the airport (including the entire north wall) and damaged ceiling tiles, door and window frames, and even structural beams.^[7] As a result, the opening was delayed until April 1960. The original terminal building and Trans-Canada Airways hangar continues in private use on the airport's north field.

Canadian Airlines Boeing 737 at Ottawa International Airport

New terminal and expansion

At the turn of the millennium, the Ottawa Airport Authority announced plans to build a second, adjacent terminal to meet the demands of increased traffic. The new terminal was built ahead of schedule opened on October 12, 2003. The new terminal building now handles all airline passenger traffic. A section of the 1960 terminal, which was connected to the new terminal by an enclosed bridge, was still used at peak times of the day when extra gate space was needed and also handled most domestic prop flights.

The airport's board of directors approved a further expansion of the airport's passenger terminal on April 4, 2006. The extension of the new terminal was built in phases. Phase II, the next phase of the expansion program opened March 13, 2008. This new addition contains over 7,000 square metres of space and adds an additional twelve gates and seven jetways. The old 1960 terminal has been demolished and by the end of 2008, its former location was paved over to provide room for more gates and jetways.

Accidents

On May 19, 1967, an Air Canada Douglas DC-8 on a training flight from Montreal crashed on approach to the Ottawa airport, killing all three crew members.^[8]

On July 23, 1983, Air Canada Flight 143 (a Boeing 767) departed the Ottawa airport enroute for Edmonton, Alberta. Due to system problems and confusion between metric and imperial units, the aircraft did not have sufficient fuel to complete the flight, and the engines stopped over Red Lake, Ontario. The crew managed to glide the aircraft to a safe landing in Gimli, Manitoba, earning it the nickname Gimli Glider.

On September 15, 1988, a Bradley Air Services BAe 748 crashed on approach to runway 25, killing both crew members.^[9]

On June 13, 1997, a North American Airlines Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner struck the runway with gear retracted during a botched approach, resulting in propellor strikes and a fire in one engine when it came to rest on runway 25. The aircraft was written off, but the crew escaped without injury.^[10]

On September 15, 2000, a Miami Air Boeing 727 arriving to pick up the Florida Panthers hockey team ran off the end of the runway. There were no injuries.^[11]

On February 17, 2008, a WestJet Boeing 737 from Calgary International Airport went off the runway shortly after landing. An investigation is currently underway by the Transportation Safety Board. None of the 94 passengers on board were injured. It is believed that freezing rain may have left the runway covered with a layer of ice.

Awards

Ottawa Airport control tower.

In March 2006, Airports Council International named Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport the 2nd best Airport in the Americas (Halifax International Airport being the first place winner), and among the ten best worldwide.

One year later, in March 2007, Ottawa International Airport was recognized again for its outstanding customer service in the Airport Service Quality Awards in Dubai, UAE. Ottawa placed 2nd overall for worldwide airports that serve between 0 and 5 million passengers, and 3rd overall for best worldwide domestic airports.^[12]

On February 27, 2008, it was announced by Airports Council International (ACI) of Geneva, Switzerland, that the Ottawa International Airport was again recognized by its customers for having outstanding customer service in 2007. For the third consecutive year, Ottawa placed 2nd overall for worldwide airports that serve between 0 and 5 million passengers.^[13]

Airlines and destinations

Macdonald-Cartier Airport is part of Canada's busiest air corridor between Ottawa, Montreal, and Toronto, which is commonly referred to as the Eastern Triangle. In fact, Air Canada have for decades specially branded flights between Toronto and Ottawa and Montreal as Rapidair. Specifically, the Ottawa-Toronto route is Canada's 3rd busiest, behind only Vancouver-Toronto and Montreal-Toronto. The airport is also the hub for flights to the eastern Arctic, including Iqaluit.

Cargo airlines

Nonstop and same-plane freighter flights

• Air Canada Cargo
• Ameriflight (Bedford, Massachusetts)
• Cargojet Airways (Edmonton, Hamilton, Winnipeg)
• FedEx Express (Buffalo, Columbus-Rickenbacker, Indianapolis, Memphis, Montreal-Mirabel)
• First Air (Iqaluit, Kuujjuaq, Val-d'Or)
• Kelowna Flightcraft Air Charter (Hamilton, Montreal-Mirabel, Vancouver, Winnipeg)
• Skylink Aviation (Toronto-Pearson)

Former airlines

In the past, this airport was also served by:

• Air Alliance (1988 - 99, to Air Nova)
• Air Atlantic
• Air Canada Tango
• Air Laurentian
• Air Nova (1986 - 2001, to Air Canada Jazz)
• Air Ontario (1987 - 2001, to Air Canada Jazz)
• Air Otonabee
• Austin Airways (1934 - 87, to Air Ontario)
• Business Express Airlines (to American Eagle)
• Canada 3000
• Canadian Airlines (1987 - 2001, to Air Canada)
• Canadian Pacific Air Lines (1942 - 87, to Canadian Airlines International)
• Canadian Regional Airlines (1991 - 2001, to Air Canada Jazz)
• City Express
• Commutair
• Delta Air Lines
• Eastern Airlines
• Empire Airlines (to Piedmont Airlines)
• Greyhound Air
• Intair
• Inter-Canadien
• JesAir
• JetsGo
• KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
• Martinair Holland
• MyTravel Airways
• Nationair
• Nordair
• Pacific Western
• Piedmont Airlines (to US Airways)
• Pilgrim Airlines
• QuikAir
• Roadair Lines
• Royal Aviation
• Skycraft
• Trans-Canada Air Lines (now Air Canada)
• Vistajet
• Voyageur Airways
• Wardair
• Worldways Canada
• Zip (airline)
• Zoom Airlines

Transit

OC Transpo bus route 97 provides frequent express service to downtown along a dedicated transitway at a cost of CAD 3.00 cash or two tickets (CAD 2.00), with connections to the train and bus stations. The now defunct plans for Ottawa's O-Train expansion included a potential link to the airport. Airport limos and shuttle buses are also available, and there are several rental car agencies located at the airport.

Facility layout

Diagram of the Ottawa airport

The airport actually consists of two distinct airfields connected by a taxiway. The smaller north field, originally referred to as Uplands, was originally founded by the Ottawa Flying Club in the late 1920s and then used by Trans-Canada Airlines, the predecessor of Air Canada. The north field is still popular for general aviation, although only one of its runways, 04/22, is still in use.

The south field consists of the two longer runways, 07/25 and 14/32, designed for jet airliners. The public passenger terminals are tucked into the north side of the intersection of the two runways, while the two general aviation FBOs for the south field are nearer to the threshold of runway 25. Customs services for private aircraft are available at the two FBOs, Shell Aerocentre and Esso, on the south field.

See also

• RCAF Station Uplands

References

External links

• Official Airport website
• Past three hours METARs, SPECI and current TAFs for Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport from NAV CANADA as available.