Region of Waterloo International Airport
| Region of Waterloo International Airport | |||||||||||||||
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| IATA: YKF – ICAO: CYKF – WMO: 71368 |
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||||||
| Operator | Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario Airport Manager - Chris Wood, AAE | ||||||||||||||
| Serves | Tri-Cities, Ontario Guelph, Ontario | ||||||||||||||
| Location | Woolwich, Ontario | ||||||||||||||
| Opened | 1930 | ||||||||||||||
| Time zone | EST (UTC−05:00) | ||||||||||||||
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC−04:00) | ||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 1,055 ft / 322 m | ||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. | ||||||||||||||
| Website | www.waterlooairport.ca | ||||||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||||||
 CYKF
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| Runways | |||||||||||||||
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| Statistics (2014) | |||||||||||||||
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Sources: Canada Flight Supplement[1]
Environment Canada[2] Movements from Statistics Canada[3] Passengers from Statistics Canada[4] |
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Region of Waterloo International Airport or Kitchener/Waterloo Airport (IATA: YKF, ICAO: CYKF) is situated near Breslau, in Woolwich Township, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
The airport is classified as an airport of entry by Nav Canada and is staffed by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). CBSA officers at this airport can handle general aviation any aircraft up to 180 people with two hours prior notice.[1]
The terminal building has an international/domestic lounge. There are four gates at this terminal to handle scheduled flights. There is a licensed sit-down eating area and a vending area for people travelling through the airport.
Contents
History
The airport used to be named Waterloo Regional Airport but it changed its name in March 2004 after Northwest Airlines announced that it would run daily flights to Detroit.
Construction began on the Kitchener-Waterloo Municipal Airport, also known as Lexington Airport, in 1929 on the Heinrich farm on Lexington Road in Waterloo. The towns of Kitchener and Waterloo and the Ontario Equitable Life and Accident Insurance Company acquired the lands to build a land and water airport facility. Completed in 1930, the airfield was mainly used for flying instruction.[5] Gilles Air Service began to operate from the airfield from 1930 to 1932 and was succeeded by Kitchener-Waterloo Flying Club from 1932 to 1951. During World War II civilian aviation ceased at the airfield and it was used by the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan.
At the end of the War there was a push for a larger and more appropriate place for private and commercial aviation in the area. In 1948 the Waterloo-Wellington Airport Commission acquired a larger site in Breslau, Ontario area and a new airfield was completed there in 1950. The original airport was sold in 1951 to A.B. Caya and re-developed into a mixed residential and commercial area.
The new K-W Municipal Airport became a general aviation facility in 1969. From 1951 to 1973 the Waterloo-Wellington Flying Club ran the airport and then sold it to Waterloo Region and the City of Guelph. It became a publicly owned airport and was renamed Waterloo Regional Airport. Today it operates 24 hours and seven days a week.
The airport's former name, Waterloo Regional Airport, is now used by Waterloo Regional Airport in Waterloo, Iowa.
Lexington Airport then and now
The baseball diamond and soccer pitch at Lexington Park, 291 Lexington Road in Waterloo, are the site of the original hangar built in 1930. The airfield extended along the southeast side of Lexington Road to University Ave.
A historical plaque near the entrance of Lexington Park describes the runways.[6]
Expansion
In 2013, it is the 16th busiest airport in Canada by aircraft movements,[3] and underwent a major expansion in 2003. Starting in 2008, the airport started expanding again to accommodate larger aircraft on the aprons and taxiways, this includes widening the main apron 3, expanding apron 2 into apron 3, new widened taxiway alpha and Charlie taxiway off apron 2 to runway 08, and approach lighting on runway 26. In 2010, Taxiway Charlie was widened to prepare for a new development area called "LL4." A new General Manager recruited from the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, Chris Wood, was appointed in September 2009.
Three commercial airlines serve the area (two year round, one seasonal): WestJet to Calgary, American Eagle to Chicago and Sunwing Airlines to Cancun. Mesaba Airlines, a Northwest Airlines affiliate suspended service to Detroit in June 2009.
In late 2005, major vacation charters (primarily to the Caribbean) began to operate during their peak season.
On 17 January 2007, Westjet announced new daily seasonal flights to Calgary started on 14 May 2007. On 27 June 2007, WestJet announced that the flights to Calgary would go year-round.
On 1 October 2007, Bearskin Airlines started daily non-stop flights to Ottawa.
On 17 December 2009, WestJet announced new daily seasonal flights to Vancouver as part of WestJet's enhanced summer schedule for 2010. However, the Vancouver flights did not return to YKF for 2011.[citation needed]
On 22 March 2011, Bearskin Airlines announced daily flight to Montreal beginning on 1 May 2011.[7]
On 13 December 2011 American Airlines announced new daily nonstop flights to Chicago beginning on 14 June 2012, the airport's first destination to the United States since 2009. The service will be operated by Envoy, using the Embraer 145 jet.[8]
In September 2012, Bearskin Airlines terminated service to Montreal. Service to Ottawa with connections to/from Northern Ontario are offered.
In September 2013, Nolinor Aviation began three weekly and four every other week charter service from the airport to Mary River via Iqaluit with a Boeing 737-200 combi. This service was expected to bring $400,000 annually to the airport through landing and ramp fees with no additional costs to the region.
On 25 March 2014 Bearskin Airlines announced that it would terminate all scheduled service from the airport effective 1 April 2014.[9]
Airlines and destinations
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| American Eagle | Chicago-O'Hare |
| Nolinor Aviation | Charter: Iqaluit, Mary River |
| Sunwing Airlines | Seasonal: Cayo Santa Maria |
| WestJet | Calgary Seasonal: Orlando |
Tenants
- Flightpath Charter Airways - charter and cargo operator
- AirSprint - private business jet operator
- Private Air - private business jet operator
- Nav Canada - air traffic control services
- GSI - ground handler for Sunwing Airlines
- Air-way Aviation - ground handler for Westjet Airlines
- Kitchener Aero Avionics - manufacturer and maintenance of avionics equipment
- Rotor Services - helicopter maintenance, R22/R44 overhaul, leasing, pre-purchase inspections and flight training
- Tri-City Aero - maintenance and repair of small private aircraft
- Reliable Horse Power - Custom aircraft engine overhauls and repairs
- Fliteline Services - FBO, Fuel, Ground handling for American Eagle, Bearskin and Nolinor Aviation[10]
- Waterloo Esso - Fuel
- National Car Rental
- Avis Rent a Car System
- Hertz car rental
- Runways Café at WWFC - licensed restaurant
- Aviator Cafe (by Edelweiss) - licensed food concession in terminal boarding lounge & arrivals lounge
- Canadian Border Services Agency
- Royal Canadian Air Cadet Youth Development Centre, 822 Tutor Squadron - Air Cadets
- Nolinor Aviation - charter/cargo airline based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Flight training schools
- Adler Aviation - training centre for small propeller aircraft
- Great Lakes Helicopter - small and medium utility helicopter training
- Waterloo-Wellington Flight Centre (with links to Conestoga College and University of Waterloo)
Ground transportation
Local taxis, limousines and chartered buses provide ground transportation to and from the airport. Private cars park at 3 parking lots located at the airport.
The main road to access the airport is Regional Road 17 or Fountain Street North. Fountain intersects with Highway 7 to the north (access to Waterloo and Guelph) or with Highway 401 to the south (access to London and Toronto). Connections to Kitchener became easier in 2013 with the extension of Fairway Road across the Grand River to Fountain Street.
There is no public transit access to the airport as the facility is mainly a general aviation facility and located in a rural area. Grand River Transit, the public transit operator in the area, does not operate any bus routes to or from the airport.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Canada Flight Supplement. Effective 0901Z 24 July 2014 to 0901Z 18 September 2014
- ↑ Synoptic/Metstat Station Information
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Total aircraft movements by class of operation — NAV CANADA towers
- ↑ Passengers enplaned and deplaned on selected services — Top 50 airports
- ↑ Kitchener-Waterloo Airport Commission fonds
- ↑ Waterloo Historical Society (2000), Kitchener-Waterloo Municipal Airport Historical Plaque, 291 Lexington Road, Waterloo.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Fliteline Services
External links
- Region of Waterloo International Airport Official website
- Past three hours METARs, SPECI and current TAFs for Region of Waterloo International Airport from Nav Canada as available.
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| Related | |
- Use Canadian English from August 2013
- All Wikipedia articles written in Canadian English
- Pages with broken file links
- Articles with unsourced statements from June 2012
- Use dmy dates from February 2011
- Certified airports in Ontario
- Transport in Waterloo Region, Ontario
- Airports established in 1930
- 1930 establishments in Ontario
