Peace River Airport
| Peace River Airport | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Owner/Operator | Town of Peace River | ||||||||||
| Location | Municipal District of Peace No. 135, near Peace River, Alberta | ||||||||||
| Time zone | MST (UTC−07:00) | ||||||||||
| • Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC−06:00) | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 1,872 ft / 571 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 56°13′38″N 117°26′54″W / 56.22722°N 117.44833°WCoordinates: 56°13′38″N 117°26′54″W / 56.22722°N 117.44833°W | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
 CYPE
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| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2010) | |||||||||||
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| Aircraft movements | 8,687 |
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Peace River Airport, (IATA: YPE, ICAO: CYPE), is a municipally owned airport located 5 nautical miles (9.3 km; 5.8 mi) west of the Town of Peace River, Alberta, Canada. The airport has one runway and is 5,000 ft × 150 ft (1,524 m × 46 m) and the terminal building, 21,000 sq ft (2,000 m2) in size.
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 until the airline ceased operations in May 2007.
That first airport in the area was located on the west bank of the Peace River, about 3 mi (4.8 km) south of the present town site. The site was abandoned when one of Grant McConachie'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.
Originally the airport had three runways: 04/22, 08/26 and 18/36. Of the three runways shown by the original configuration, one are still operating: 04/22. In the fall of 1942 an American Corps of engineers extended the 04/22 runway by a further 2,000 ft (610 m). 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 played host 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, a Beech Expeditor out of which two parachutists jumped.
In June 1960 the Peace River Airport closed down in order to complete extensive construction to the airport. 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.
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