Iqaluit Airport
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The Iqaluit Airport ( IATA: YFB, ICAO: CYFB ) is the airport of the capital of the territory of Nunavut in Canada. The airport is operated by the territorial government. There is a regular flight operations, for example to Ottawa or Montreal, but also smaller towns and settlements to the east of Nunavut are served. In addition, the Iqaluit airport is a base for combat aircraft of the type McDonnell Douglas CF-18 Hornet of the Canadian Forces.
Furthermore, the airport for emergency landings along the polar routes is provided.
History
Military use
The Iqaluit Airport was created as Frobisher Bay Air Force Base during the 1940s and 1950s; the base was used by the United States and Canada together for transport. 1963, the base was closed, the airport was then used for civilian air traffic.
Civilian use
Since the 1950s, Frobisher Bay was a happy unused landing place for so-called technical stops for airlines, which cross the North Atlantic. From Glasgow -Prestwick or Shannon if you started toward the west, one usually preferred a route via Iceland or the Azores to Gander and on to New York City or somewhere else. However, had to dodge (via Frobisher Bay) due to bad weather forecasts sometimes on a more northerly route. In the meantime, ran the PanAm a base in Frobisher Bay.
With the introduction of other long-haul aircraft Iqaluit was served less and less of international flights. Nevertheless, the airport was always well attended, as a regional airport he had great importance.
During the 1960s, Frobisher Bay / Iqaluit mostly through Nordair from Montreal. Towards the end of the decade expanded Bradley Air Services and the beginning of the 1970s, numerous smaller settlements were served in the Arctic and supplied with necessaries of life and the post office.
In the 1980s, the Canadian airline industry was in upheaval, as Air Canada and Canadian Airlines International bought up a number of regional airlines. 1977 Air Canada bought the Nordair, to sell them in 1984 at Canadian Airlines. Between 1985 and 1988 continued the First Air Boeing 727 Another one on the routes Montreal Iqaluit Iqaluit or Ottawa. 1995 bought the First Air, the small airline Ptarm1 IgAN Airways, and 2000 Canadian Airlines was acquired by Air Canada.
Infrastructure
- 2 Hangar
- 1 Terminal
- 1 main runway
- 3 ramps
- 1 " Frobisher Bay Touchdown Services "
In the terminal are:
- Check-in counters
- 3 Piers
- 1 baggage claim belt
- Gift Shop
- Travel agency
- Tourist information
- Car rental
- Taxi companies
- Children's Corner
- Disabled Facilities
The airport has 30 short term parking.
More information
Numerous flights have been and are diverted due to medical problems to Iqaluit. On 31 May 1996, the Virgin Atlantic Airways Flight 7, which landed from London to Los Angeles was traveling, unexpectedly in Iqaluit after a passenger suffered a heart attack. This was the first time that a Boeing 747 landed in Iqaluit. On landing one of the engines was damaged, so 397 passengers, including the singer Gary Barlow stranded in Iqaluit. They could, after 16 hours in which they were housed in a nearby indoor curling, to continue its flight after the Virgin Atlantic could charter two aircraft. The passengers were flown to New York, from where flights to Los Angeles were organized. Prince Michael of Kent, who was also on board this aircraft, received an escort of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and got a place in a planned, earlier flight. The damaged aircraft was repaired and left Iqaluit four days later, and the passenger survived the heart attack.