Why Canada's Longest Runway Exists

Runway 17L/35R at Calgary International Airport has the distinction of being the longest runway in all of Canada, at 14,000 feet. On first glance, that seems like an absurd amount of runway, especially for all the short and medium-haul traffic the airport gets.
So, why does Calgary have a runway that’s over 4 kilometres long?
DISCLAIMER: All aerial photos and videos of the airport were taken either by myself as a passenger, or by mounted GoPros. ATC instructions were complied with at all times.
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SOURCES:
Canada Flight Supplement
Passenger statistics:
www.yyc.com/en...
“Hot and High” Operations:
www.skybrary.a...
YYC's New Runway:
www.calgaryhera...
airportimprove...
www.skiesmag.c...
www.skiesmag.c...
canada.constru...
www150.statcan...
RCAF Station Namao/CFB Edmonton:
wayback.archive...
edmonton-real-...
militarybruce....
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Outro song - "Take Flight" by Nyhtian: • Nyhtian - Take Flight ...
© Alex Praglowski Aviation 2020
This video is the property of Alex Praglowski Aviation and may not be used for any purpose without prior permission. Contact me at the email in the "About" section of my channel for usage.

[@DanielR1-MIDI]

Canada’s longest runway exists because out of all the runways in Canada one must be longer than all the others

[@MaxShinBowl]

Who are you, who are so wise in the ways of science?

[@shikharjoshi1113]

Yeah, it's big brain time.

[@weweponsel1339]

@@MaxShinBowl iii

[@classonbread5757]

They can all be the same size as well

[@MrKkdkk]

@@classonbread5757 that's impossible to achieve

[@nautilusshell4969]

I visited Calgary in the early 2000s and remember reading at the airport that Calgary was one of the emergency landing strips for the Space Shuttle, owing to the length of its runway.

[@Formaldehydex]

Based on what this video stated, it would be too short except perhaps in winter. The main shuttle runway at sea level is 1500 feet longer.

[@_Cheesy_Chang_]

@@Formaldehydex that’s why it’s an “emergency” landing strip. They don’t plan on actually using it unless there’s no other choice

[@Formaldehydex]

@@_Cheesy_Chang_ So you think they picked a landing strip that is obviously not long enough when there are other landing strips that are? Bwahaha.

[@johnlacey3857]

@@Formaldehydex Geez calm down! The Calgary runway was AN alternate, not THE alternate. Just because it’s approx 10% shorter than the Shuttle’s primary runway doesn’t mean it’s unacceptable, it only means it’s not optimal. If the shuttle was in distress and in the vicinity of western Canada, this was considered a vetted and viable option. Not a difficult concept.

[@Formaldehydex]

@@johnlacey3857 “Geez”, get a clue and actually watch the video to discern the real reason the runway is so long. It has absolutely nothing to do with the shuttle. If it was designed to be an emergency runway, it would have to be much longer due to the increased distance needed for landing at higher altitudes. Not to mention it makes zero sense that the shuttle would even try to land in Alberta when the actual emergency runways aren’t that far away. You do know the shuttle glides and was controlled by pilots, right? Google “shuttle emergency landing strips” and you will see this airport is not mentioned.

[@ScottRothsroth0616]

Learning on KZbin...what a concept. Seriously, thank you for uploading; it is cool you cited your sources.

[@sadrevolution]

So grateful for the sources!

[@bobbycv64]

@Scott Roth EXCELLENT POINT.

[@beback_]

It's not unusual at all. There are enough lectures on KZbin to get a master's at almost anything.

[@xr6lad]

Pity then the half brain uses feet one moment then kms the next. So hardly on the ball.

[@YsterbergZA]

Thanks for this Alex. Initially I thought the purpose of the length would be an alternate for the Space Shuttle. FAUP (UTN) in South Africa is in the arid Kalahari Desert and sports RWY 17/ 35 as longest civilian runway in the Southern Hemisphere. The total length of 4900m (elev 2791') is meant to be an alternate for the Shuttle. It also serves as an international airport for B-747C's exporting grapes to Europe.

[@streamofconsciousness5826]

So next time you are having out of season grapes in Europe you can thank NASA and the shuttle program.

[@YsterbergZA]

@Stream of Consciousness we used to fly those grapes out on a rented 747, and apparently, the aircraft paid for itself in one load. The wines from that area are also some of our best.😁

[@r52euphoria]

Actually the longest runway is the Naniamo base just north of Edmonton, and yes it was the first alternate runway for the space shuttle.

[@garthquapp6370]

I am old. I remember the First Calgary international Airport. When Calgary opened the second airport, British Airways landed the Concord there as the first international flight. Also the reason why the runway is also long because it was to be an alternative landing strip for the United States Space Shuttle in emergency.

[@viscount757]

Same airport, new terminal, the first phase of which opened in 1977. It's actually YYC's third terminal. The first was in a couple of converted hangars on the southeast corner of the airport (one of which still exists today). It was replaced by the second terminal at the southwest corner used from 1956 to 1977.

[@oh8wingman]

Having lived in Calgary and flying in and out dozens of times, I'm surprised that the other reason for the long strips was not mentioned. The prevailing winds at Calgary international are out of the West and the runways are North and South. Take offs are not too bad but landings can be, shall we say, exciting. It is very disturbing to some to be landing in an aircraft that is crabbing close to 45 degrees due to severe cross winds and looking out the windows straight up the runway you are trying to land on. Under these circumstances it sometimes takes a tad longer to get properly lined up with the tarmac so the planes eat up more runway. It's a strange feeling when the one wheel touches down and the entire aircraft pivots back to straight in a fraction of a second. When coming in under these conditions it gets very quiet on the plane..........lol

[@marciolprado1]

Is this your opinion or is it in official documents? I couldn't find it in the official documents, would you mind showing me where you are? Thank you.

[@trequor]

Only half of the runways run North/South. It's just both sets of 17/35. 08/26 and 11/29 are great for takeoffs and landings in typical Calgary wind conditions.

[@That-Dirtbag-Canuck]

I also live in Calgary and it feels like there is craters in the runway when you land

[@flowerpt]

Ah, very helpful! This solves a mystery for me, along with the video. Thanks for adding this.

[@viscount757]

Canada has 25 runways 10,000 feet or longer. Following per Wikipedia data. May have missed one. Includes Canadian Forces bases (Comox, Cold Lake, Trenton, Bagotville, Goose Bay) although all of those except Trenton are also used by civil flights. 1. 14,000 - Calgary, AB (YYC) 2. 12,675 - Calgary, AB (YYC) 3. 12,600 - Cold Lake, AB (YOD) 4 & 5 (tie) - 12,000 (2 runways) - Montreal/Mirabel, QC (YMX) 6. 11,500 - Vancouver, BC (YVR) 7. 11,450 - Prince George, BC (YXS) 8. 11,120 - Toronto, ON (YYZ) 9. 11,051 - Goose Bay, NL (YYR) 10. 11,050 - Toronto, ON (YYZ) 11 & 12 (tie). 11,000 - Montreal, QC (YUL) and Winnipeg, MB (YWG) 13. 10,995 - Edmonton, AB (YEG) 14. 10,500 - Halifax, NS (YHZ) 15 & 16 (tie) - 10,200 - Edmonton, AB (YEG) and Gander, NL (YQX) 17. 10,011 - Stephenville, NL (YJT) 18. 10,006 - Hamilton, ON (YHM) 19. 10,005 - Ottawa, ON (YOW) 20. 10,004 - North Bay, ON (YYB) 21-25 (tie) - 10,000 - Comox, BC (YQQ), Cold Lake, AB (YOD), Trenton, ON (YTR), Val d'Or, QC (YVO), Bagotville, QC (YBG)

[@toomanyuserids]

All those landing strips for B-52s and B-1s and B-2s coming back over the pole...

[@juniorcampbell2980]

interesting. Did not know that Calgary was that high above sea level

[@alukuhito]

Rocky Mountains: Am I nothing to you?

[@oswaldburga9836]

Don't quote exactly but Calgary altitude is around 1150 feet only.

[@wayneessar7489]

A common greeting is: How high are you today?

[@ron6892]

Yes, because I live there

[@ron6892]

@@oswaldburga9836 .......elevation is an approximate 3600 feet asl

[@tylerlindgren2434]

Lets be real the true reason Calgary has the longest runway is just so they can have a bigger Runway than Edmonton 100% Fact

[@hamzaalberta8335]

Haha

[@225degrees]

Uh.... No. Edmonton airport is quite simply, a joke.

[@hamzaalberta8335]

@@225degrees So are Calgary's shopping malls.

[@225degrees]

@@hamzaalberta8335 Oh, ouch. Your precious west Edmonton dump... Who cares, Edmonton is a cesspool of idiots and losers. Without the oilfields in the North Edmonton wouldn't exist. It's literally the last place to shop before going North.

[@phillm156]

Edmonton has more Stanley cups

[@moemanncann895]

CFB Namao outside of Ed monton had that long runway( no longer in use) which was used by NASA for one of its emergency landing sites

[@gmitchellfamily]

Another bonus of our altitude I noticed on my one (and so far only) Dreamliner departure from YYC - Because we already live at 3000' and 787s pressurize their cabin to 6000', the pressure differential when you climb is much less than otherwise!

[@Bartonovich52]

Pressure differential is the difference between the inside and outside air pressure.. which is actually higher in the 787. You’re thinking of cabin altitude, which is lower.

[@swap9893]

Fun fact, 17L/35R is only 1000 feet less than the requirement for the space shuttle.

[@Dwightstjohn-fo8ki]

There's a whole list of military, logistics, and forward planning reasons for Calgary and Edmonton having long runways. The transport of oil and resource equipment (not to mention military) needs a secure, central airport that becomes an Arctic worldwide hub if needed. Moving forward, who knows in a few years what size planes and equipment are going to need such a secure airport? Alberta pretty much BURIED a lot of their infrastructure so you can move entire buildings across the province with the lifting of just a few power lines. HUGE pieces are always coming through to go north, from the USA.

[@LittleLordFancyLad]

Another long runway that is still in operation is at CFB Cold Lake in Alberta which is 3,840 m/12,600 ft long. The base also has a 3,048 m/10,000 ft and a 2,520 m/8,270 ft to supplement it.

[@GPCCkitchener]

I learned to fly at CFB Namao in the 1980's. There was a civilian flying club there. We used to do triple touch-and-gos in Cessna 150's. Touch down, climb back to 100', touch down again, climb back to 100' again, touch down a third time, and then climb out into the circuit. We did close circuits at 800', while at the same time CF-5's and Tutors did wide circuits at 1000'. It was wild.

[@bigsyrup8567]

And now the .mil has built out onto the ramp and don’t use the runway at all outside of leasing it to some guy to stretch and re-coil cables. Pretty pathetic. But as a former grunt, that’s our military now.

[@Zerbey]

Denver's runway is 16,000ft for the same reason. The Shuttle Landing Facility has a 15,000ft runway because of the long runoff needed by the Shuttle, but it could theoretically land at any airport which could handle larger aircraft - they just wanted some extra insurance in case the chute failed or other such issues.

[@Paul_Lucas]

Great video Alex - never knew this!

[@oldmanc2]

Hey - good to see you here Paul! Don't worry I'm not a stalker - just a fan, roll on 2021...

[@bambro982]

Hi

[@richdear4723]

@@oldmanc2 I buy TV no ok

[@gingp64]

Likewise Paul stay safe

[@kmoneyyy_12]

Love your videos

[@PNWElevatorAviation]

The Denver has only one 16,000 FT Runway but all others are 12,000 FT

[@LostSpider]

Can you make a video about what is the most polite runway in canada?

[@nw6gmp]

I love the "Definitely not to scale" disclaimer 😂

[@bagofchicken]

I LOL'd too

[@502Aviation]

With so much open land at either end of 17L/35R, they could have made the runway a few thousand feet longer, further reducing the chances of an overrun

[@everettrailfan]

Probably just didn't want to spend the extra money.

[@LowsJuan]

Plus unlike nuclear missile silos in Russia the longer the runway the more the maintenance costs. Plowing plus think of how long a FOD walk would take.

[@225degrees]

The Calgary Airport Authority does not own the land north or south of 35R/17L.

[@trequor]

The chance of an overrun is already negligible.

[@dathoang5037]

Wow, this is the first video I’ve watched that uses Feet for distance and Celsius for temperature. Rare combination right there.

[@Taurineg]

They are standard in US aviation

[@iancanuckistan2244]

Canuckistan is officially a metric country but realistically the only metric you hear is temperature, road speed limits and liters if gasoline.

[@gregrtodd]

@@Taurineg Pretty much ALL western aviation really. :)

[@225degrees]

Thanks to the Americans aviation must have both scales/units of measure. Oddly there are many cases where metric and SAE are mixed in aviation.

[@Chicago63]

@@225degrees The U.S. should have gone metric like we were supposed to in the 70s.

[@rogerhargreaves2272]

I guess they have got the space. Nice video, thank you for sharing.

[@h.j.bouzek606]

New runway is 435 mm (17") thick concrete placed above a 200 mm (8") cement stabilized base (the other 3 runways are asphalt); had the first LED High-Intensity Runway Edge Lights for a 60-meter wide runway in the Americas; first low-protrusion 8-inch LED taxiway centerline lights in the Americas; first Gen IV ALCS Graphical User Interface (land, stop bars and hold short lights) in Canada; and first Surface Movement Guidance and Control System operation with BRITE III in Canada.

[@225degrees]

Amen brother! All facts.

[@dlbrittain1976]

thanks...yes we lived near KDEN....that was an important feature with their runways...being at a higher elevation than YYC plus their additional runway at 4877M

[@mikejessmax]

So, in another installment, please discuss CFB Namao's runway. That was an alternate space shuttle landing runway due to its length.

[@robhobsweden]

For us who use metric: 4267,2m long.

[@Aeropunk08]

THANK YOU

[@patriot328]

The reason they built it that long is they knew I'd eventually be bringing an airplane into there. Love that float.

[@stankythecat6735]

This is one of the reasons Palm Springs airport closes when it gets to 118+. The runway is short and the air gets thin in the heat

[@thebigdog360]

Love that you are uploading more!

[@RoodeMenon]

For Fast & Furious movies. 😁

[@garymartin9777]

Back in the early '80s I flew into Columbus, OH. I was surprised to see the extra long runway which seemed excessive for a commercial municipal airport -- over 10k feet but I don't remember exactly. Sometime later I learned there's a SAC base nearby. Then I had the aha moment.

[@LegionsOfScipii]

And its an alternate landing zone for the space shuttle

[@jonnyboy2128]

Alternative.

[@jimb4957]

Great information, Alex, thank you! As a not-in-the-know, AV-geek, this was very interesting. We fly into and out of YYC often from the States (usually connecting to YQR) and I am always looking around at how things work at Calgary. The airport has definitely changed from my first visit there in 2005! Thank your for the great shots of downtown and the awesome CargoJet 757 (an elusive bird to be spotted here in Seattle 👍🏻).

[@timolheiser7874]

Besides the need for a longer runway for emergency space shuttle landings (the shuttle has been seen flying above Calgary), when landings occurred at Edwards Airforce Base. In summer the hot temperatures make the air less dense, and this affects the jet engines thrust to weight ratio. At warmer temperatures passenger luggage could be left behind and forwarded on a later flight. That happened to me with a flight from Kelowna to Calgary, in late summer. I got my luggage a week later, cause it ended up in somewhere in eastern Canada. The United Emirates would not run its airline through Calgary International unless they lengthened the runway for the A380, and requested the longer runway. So the whole new International wing of YYC was designed to handle the A380, along with the runway.

[@casey6556]

Psh, everyone knows Calgary has the longest runway in Canada because they needed the 2 victory points from the Longest Runway card /s

[@cammac1393]

His voice sounds like a flight attendant

[@ThunderSims]

**ding**

[@mikeyoung9810]

All kinds of people are flight attendants with all kinds of voices. With such poor humor, you must be a hit at birthday parties.

[@smallstudiodesign]

And so apropos, no?

[@scottjohnson5415]

Salt Lake City, UT is at almost 6,000 feet above seal level. Our airport's runways are 12,000 feet long.

[@yixnorb5971]

I suspect there may be long runways in smaller markets that do not necessarily need them because they may be half way along a very long route without other airports near them and could be used in an emergency by larger aircraft that require such runway length.

[@iankershaw9010]

Hot’n’high. Over the years of the construction I gathered hundreds of images. I was fortunate to join the media group and we drove the whole length prior to first commercial flights in and out (naturally it was a FOD check). First in was WestJet from Newfoundland, fin #1! First out was Air Canada to Japan . I was fortunate to be at the 7,000ft mark when the 767 left, followed by quite a dust cloud.

[@joseventurausmc]

And its still not as long as the runway in Fast and the Furious.

[@stardust5379]

Or Area 51.

[@ronh2660]

A video game isn't real

[@mytech6779]

Required length is highly dependent on surface condition, temperature, expected cross winds, emergency buffers, obstacles on climb out, and inoperative equipment. Some of this can be satisfied with overrun areas and clearways but those are kind of half measures and after thoughts, if you have the land and equipment for a new runway and plenty of traffic, might as well add a little extra concrete.

[@mytech6779]

And by all that I mean the ground roll is generally much shorter than the required runway length. The common limit is distance needed to accelerate to V1 and abort. Also to be considered is the local noise impact, a long runway allows lower engine power and higher speed on initial climb out .

[@wynanddutoit9869]

Upington in South Africa got a runway of 5000m, a whole 1000 more than the one discussed here.

[@keeff8195]

I also heard that calgary was one of a few emergency airports for the space shuttle.

[@sadrevolution]

I hope this is true, it would be so cool!

[@craigpetroskey8934]

So was CFB Namao (North of Edmonton) before they closed the airbase after the US Space Shuttle program ended, by converting it to an Army base. The Canadian DoD partially converted the runway to parking for helicopters and also built barracks where the runways used to be, so the PPCLI battalions could house the troops.

[@keeff8195]

@@sadrevolution I hav`nt found any info on line that would verify that, but I`m sure I heard it on the news.

[@moemanncann895]

Unlikely as shuttle program ended years before Calgary's longer runway, NASA wanted length for emergency landing sites, which CFB Namao had at the time

[@Benglator1]

Here are the airports in Canada that were green lighted for emergency shuttle landings if they were needed........ :) Canada CFB Goose Bay, Goose Bay, Labrador CFB Namao, Edmonton, Alberta (until 1994)[25] Gander International Airport, Gander, Newfoundland Stephenville International Airport, Stephenville, Newfoundland St. John's International Airport, St. John's, Newfoundland Halifax Stanfield International Airport, Halifax, Nova Scotia

[@robertreznik9330]

Our local airport is almost 14,000ft and it seems like a long ways to the terminal when landing in a reverse than normal wind direction. It was built in 1942 for a B-52 Stratofortress base with an altitude of 3600 ft. These planes were built to fly from Texas to Russia over the north pole. It is now AMA Rick Husband International.

[@messagesystem333]

B-52s didn't exist in 1942

[@robertreznik9330]

@@messagesystem333 it was built in 1952...that was a typo Pantex just to the north was 1942 where the Ordnance was produced until 1945. Pantex then assembled the hydrogen bombs until today. 60 miles north, Cactus Ordnance produced the nitrates.

[@BrianWalsingham]

I’ve flown out of there a couple of times recently. Beautiful international terminal.

[@Green__one]

Considering all those "airport improvement fees" it better be! I'd have rather kept the old international area and saved on all those extra fees on every ticket.

[@planefan082]

@@Green__one Meh. It needed a lot of work. First impressions of a city mean everything

[@Green__one]

@@planefan082 Nothing like your first impression being "Ticket prices to here are ridiculous!"

[@planefan082]

@@Green__one Oh, don't get me wrong, ticket price insanity is one of the things I despise most about North America as a whole. However, speaking from experience, the airport was at the time the worse factor. All N.A. ticket prices suck, so the airports better be good.

[@Green__one]

@@planefan082 Airports are glorified bus stops. I don't need them to be fancy, I need them to be efficient. YYC went the other way, they went fancy, but not at all efficient. They've partially remedied that now with the addition of the golf cart bus things, but those are also about the least efficient method they could have chosen. The whole thing was designed to be fancy, no other considerations were thought of. That's the problem with airports like YYC, they have no competition, you aren't realistically going to catch your flight from anywhere else, so they can tack on whatever fees they want, and do whatever they want, and people will still fly through there. they have no choice.

[@mctoads8230]

I’m pretty sure the Garrison runway in Edmonton is longer. It was a backed up landing spot for the space shuttle

[@havocreaper2404]

I loasded a drilling rig into that antonoff in calgary

[@avatar2thewayofwater3]

Tribhuvan intl airport in Kathmandu has a elevation of 4390ft/1338m.But the runway is only 3350m long with hills surrounding the runway from all sides😥.

[@brianjreintjes]

Great video. RIP AN-225

[@BtcSimmer]

3500 + feet and hot high and heavy days I’ve taken off and landed here before the new one was built! However in winter your density altitude can really help you out!

[@gregmackenzie5822]

In the 70s at CFB Edmonton , Namao ,runway 11 / 29 was over 19,000 Feet !

[@craigpetroskey8934]

They anticipated more heavy traffic with B747, A380, and B777 types.

[@225degrees]

Wrong. 777 and 747 aircraft have been coming to Calgary for many years, decades in the case of the 747. The existing 12,625' runway is capable of handling the A380 as well. Unfortunately, due to low demand and government interference(federally) there will never be an A380 in Calgary. At least not a scheduled arrival. Airbus has also stopped producing the A380 so the chances are getting slimmer by the day.

[@craigpetroskey8934]

@@225degrees Who knows? There is speculation that one of the aircraft manufacturers is pondering an advanced version of a SST program. In addition, many of the 'heavy' aircraft operators are converting their aircraft from passenger to freight operations. Maybe we will see more A380 B777 and B747 freighters at YYC.

[@225degrees]

@@craigpetroskey8934 Possible but again, not likely. Cargolux has the largest fleet of dedicated freighters, and they've hinted that they will likely not be using 747's after the current fleet ages out.

[@roberthowell7095]

Yes they could land and depart. But the length of the runway plus the thinner air at this altitude restricted their take off weight in hotter weather resulting in an aircraft departing without a full load of passengers and or cargo. This resulted in the longer runway.

[@asquithmainlines699]

I worked in Brazil for a year, 3 months in one week out. The language barrier was a bid challenge so when I landed back in Calgary the first time it felt good to be back in Canada. Until I went to the food court in the Calgary airport and the person working there messed up my order because they couldn’t understand english. LOL!!! I will never forget that.

[@barisondude7673]

That runway is nothing compared to the one from Fast & Furious 6

[@JakubCA1]

lmao truee

[@28add11]

Great video as always, keep up the great work!

[@LowsJuan]

Thanks for mentioning Namao. I was the first thing I wonder when you revealed the length.

[@yixnorb5971]

Nanaimo in B.C.

[@LowsJuan]

Nope CFB Namoa was an alternate runway for the space shuttle and was the longest in the commonwealth.

[@vaalrus]

@@LowsJuan A tragedy that it was mothballed. :(

[@LouisBear112]

Wow. It's insane how quick calgary grows. Its 2021 and all of that empty area around the airport is filled

[@-FreeMiner-]

That condor landing was smooth 👌👌👌

[@AlbertaMisfit]

Just really quick. I live in Calgary Alberta. The 2nd runway now the second longest was originally made with the space shuttle in mind. We were an emergency landing airport and I believe was used at one point

[@raymondduck6492]

That runway did not exist when the shuttle was still flying... it came much later.

[@tomsmith3045]

Great video! I'll add that the only people that would ever say a runway was too long are the people that have to plow it.

[@danp1975]

Excellent info! Thanks for sharing your great videos.

[@CoastalAutoReactionCAR]

Cool thanks Alex!

[@earlystrings1]

Very cool. All of Denver’s (DEN 5,322 MSL) runways are 2,000 feet shorter except 16R/34L which is a massive 16,000 feet long. Passengers at DEN have occasionally been bumped on very hot summer days to get takeoff weight low enough for the high density altitudes.

[@Mark-pp7jy]

I worked the ramp at DIA. (DEN) Transferring bags underground from A to C seemed like 16,000 feet. 🙂

[@georgew.5639]

The density altitude probably gets ridiculous there.

[@christoohunders5316]

My initial idea was to accommodate the space shuttle !!

[@ih302]

That's why Stephenville NL's runway is so long (it was former US Ernest Harmon Air Force Base).

[@maddoggt6145]

That's why the runway at Stephenville Newfoundland is so long. It was a backup to land space shuttle.

[@Whisper555]

So that is what 4KM looks like laid out in front of you. It is hard to get perspective as it doesn't look that long

[@duggdugg176]

thanks for a fascinating, clear, concise video. my dad was a flight instructor in the RCAF in Claresholm, Alberta and later an air traffic controller at YYZ- he would have enjoyed this...

[@michaelritchie5303]

Two words. Thin air.

[@patriciadodd9412]

In 1967 you could land in Calgary Airport , which was out in the middle of nowhere, walk down the stairs out the gate where the cars were parked, get in and go! The cost of a 45 min flight from Vanc BC was $50.00 and a meal was served. Ahhhh the good ol days.

[@richardclough2998]

Churchill Manitoba has an extremly long runway that you can see from space on Google Earth. It seems extremly long, but apparently it was built for the Space Shuttle Program. The idea was killed after the Challenger Accident, but there was a plan to have Discovery based permently out of Vandenburg California, to be launched into polar orbits. One of the Space Shuttle abort modes would have been Abort One Aroumd - AOA. When launching from Kennedy, that would like up with Vandenburg or Ewards AFB. On a polar trajectory, given the earth's rotation under it, that would have lined up nicely with Churchill MB. Now the site is maintained as an ETOPS diversionary airport, given all the flights to and from Asia over the Arctic.

[@fly4fun07]

Design was established well before the A380 was built. Department of Transport Calgary Zoning Plan dated April 26, 1977. (b) the strip associated with the runway designated 34R-16L is fourteen thousand four hundred (14,400) feet in length, (200' at each end for the runway strip = 14,000' ) Anybody remember what the runway length requirements were for a DC8 or B707 at MTOW on a 33 degree day with stage 2 climb performance. Likely only slightly less than an A340-600.

[@daxconnell7661]

we had an Antonov visit the Prince George airport in BC Canada one year and that was a sight to see.

[@chesslerbooks]

The long runway is to attract rich Chinese and Japanese tourists. Calgary is the nearest airport to the Canadian Rockies, in particular Banff. The gift shops in Banff all have signs in Chinese and Japanese, and oriental sales persons. The long runways make it much more likely that tourists from China and Japan will fly direct to Calgary than almost anyplace else in North America. Or anywhere in the world really. Canada is beautiful, friendly, safe, and cheap. I live in Denver and we have an even longer runway. The hope is that eventually full jumbos can take off from Denver to Japan, China, Thailand, Singapore, Australia, NZ, to take pressure off SFO and LAX, and to Europe. But the Corona Virus handled that for the next decade.

[@guylavoie1342]

I remember that one reason given for the long (12,000') runways at Montreal's Mirabel airport was to be able to accommodate the Concorde airplane.

[@marsgal42]

Nice runway. At my home base (Kamloops) I have 8000 feet of runway to play with. The biggest planes that routinely fly out of here are 737s but in a pinch just about anything can land here. Having learned to fly on a 2100 foot runway 8000 feet was luxury. When I posted my first video from Kamloops several people asked "how long *is* that runway?" :-)

[@trequor]

I mean training aircraft in general do not require much runway for takeoffs and landings. I know our 172s only needed about 500ft for an experienced pilot to comfortably operate

[@ebonykitsune5031]

Yay!! A Cargojet plane! Lol😂I work there every day. ❤Thanks for including us!

[@peterdewar8592]

I believe it was built to provide a long enough and wide enough runway for B-52s to land if they are having mechanical issues on their way north. CFB Edmonton had this distinction, maybe not the longest but the widest, just for that reason. When the Liberal's removed the RCAF from Edmonton and sent the army from Calgary to Edmonton, they built storage buildings on the end of the runway. The runway could handle the weight of tanks without having to pour new concrete.

[@jasminejohnston6393]

It’s a redundant runway it has both an instrument landing system AND PAPI lights. Pilots of 747s hate PAPI lights because they don’t work very well for planes with high up cockpits

[@seanrodgers1839]

It looks like there's space for another runway right next to it. Also, taxiway stubs leading to grass.

[@renes747]

I think that runway was a backup for the shuttle landings too. My office is right under the flight path. I remember when the 6 engine antonov flew over. It looked like it was going so slow.

[@lukerinderknecht2982]

Seeing as the Space Shuttle was retired three years prior to that runway being completed, I'm dubious that's an accurate statement 😂

[@MajorOutage]

@@lukerinderknecht2982 There are lots of things that are made to the benefit of other things that no longer exist by the time they are completed. Bureaucracy at work.

[@mapleleafaviation304]

I thought YYZ ( my local home airport) had the longest runways, because it is in the largest city in Canada in terms of population and air traffic. But God this is a shocking fact. Thanks for bringing this fact to my screen, Alex! Take care 👍🏼

[@Gameflyer001]

YYZ does have some long runways for sure, but Toronto is only around 251 ft above sea level; Calgary is around 14x higher than Toronto at 3600 ft ASL.

[@trequor]

Toronto is barely above sea level.

[@elliectroncake]

@@Gameflyer001 The airport is 568 ft above sea level

[@streamofconsciousness5826]

Well..... now we know it's a competition, ...they are going to bulldoze right through Mississauga into milton to extend the Pearson runway.

[@kevineckelkamp]

So that's where rush got the title

[@kellyh4035]

As someone who lives next to the new runway and bought before it was even proposed or zoned, I know how many F'ing aircraft it handles 24/7!

[@bigchuy]

the runway at Namao was an emergency space shuttle landing site

[@achristian7015]

I believe Mirabel has two 12,000 foot runways and they are near sea level, about 500 or less. Its been about 40 years since I have flown into it.

[@malcolmscrivener8750]

Do you mean a boat or a bout ?

[@fernandotricoloratemorrer4574]

I live in rio and we have a 4km runway on galeão(international airport) its a crazy amount considering the altitude of rio

[@chrishewitt4220]

Flew in and out on RAF Tristars when attending British Army Training Unit, Suffield (BATUS) near Medicine Hat.

[@blackfrost300]

I was always told that one of the reasons why CFB Edmonton’s runway was so long was to accommodate the space shuttle if it ever needed to land there, also because RCAF C-130’s and USAF C-5 never would’ve required a runway that long.

[@beer1for2break3fast4]

Built 3 years after the last shuttle flight.

[@h.j.bouzek606]

Originally, both runways (built by the US Army during WW 2 to support the Alaska Highway construction) were 6,890 feet. After the war Namao was used by the USAF Strategic Air Command. The airfield was lengthened and strengthened between 1954 and 1957, then again in 1959 and 1960, to compensate for the increasing weight of tankers used to refuel nuclear bombers patrolling the arctic. Runway 12/30 then measured 60 meters wide and 4,200 metres long, with two 180-meter over-runs. If you look at a satellite view the old SAC alert building (3 white covered entrance tunnels) is just off runway 30's threshold.

[@viscount757]

@@beer1for2break3fast4 No, the now closed runway at Namao north of Edmonton (now Canadian Forces Base Edmonton and only used by the army) was extended to its final 13,780 feet length long beore the Space Shuttle existed, due to the base being used for a while in the 1950s/60s by the USAF for refueling tankers. You can see that extension of about 3,000 feet on Google Maps due to the different pavement color.

[@lorddoug2]

@@viscount757 Namao was a great airport and in the city. Why then was it necessary to build a new airport at Nisku?

[@viscount757]

@@lorddoug2 Namao was an air force base and the late 1950s when Edmonton International Airport (YEG) was built was the peak of the Cold War and Namao was in heavy military use. I doubt the air force was interested in sharing Namao with commercial airlines. The Namao runway layout also wasn't ideal as the two runways intersected in the middle which makes it difficult to use both runways simultaneously. The site for YEG was decided in 1955, construction started in 1957 and it opened in 1960, just in time for the first jets operated by Trans-Canada Air Lines and Canadian Pacific which couldn't use the now closed Municipal (later City Centre) Airport. If Namao had somehow been available as the new commercial airport I'm sure the decision would now be very unpopular as the northern edge of the city now almost reaches the south edge of Namao, now a major Canadian Army base. In the 1950s/60s Namao seemed like a fairly long trip out into the country. With the growth of the city, nearby residents would now be complaining about the noise.

[@BenHowells-o4n]

How does San Diego handle more traffic than YYC with only 1 runway? Surprised to hear that Calgary was reaching max capacity with 3 runways

[@EchoConstellation]

Did you ever get the chance to make a Namao video? I didn’t see it looking back.

[@AlexPraglowskiAviation]

It's in the works! Finding information is just a bit tricky since it's military.

[@kovu159]

Alberta generally builds infrastructure capacity before it’s needed to enable future growth. By the time it finishes it seems like a no brainer even if it seems overly ambitious at the start.

[@user-hw1cr5uq4z]

The longest runway at DEN is 16.000 feet.

[@thelightersideofrc]

Awesome info! Thanks 😎

[@Falcon7001]

Wasn't one of the previous longest runways also designated as a possible US Space Shuttle landing spot also?

[@ljstock77]

Nice job on this video Alex. There are many people in the world that do not understand density altitude.

[@FAngus-ly8lk]

I think there should be one more post on this comment thread that says this runway was an alternate for Space Shuttle landings. Since half the posts seem to mention this, and nobody seems to have read any of the previous posts. Did you know this runway in Calgary is 14,000 feet long because it was an alternate for Space Shuttle landings?

[@davidcormier6346]

As a young man I worked for Pratt & Whitney later in life I moved to Yellowknife following my wife's career well there the runway was only $7,500 ft

[@sonshinelight]

Hi Alex. When I lived in Calgary, it was also known as McCall Field. Yeah... Old guy, right, lol

[@myrailfanchannel]

CYYC is an landing spot for the shuttle, as well as the 747 that shuttled it. Mention that perhaps?

[@Jay-hr3rh]

Did u guys notice that his cessna 152 flew the length of the entire runway during the video?