Departure
95%
vs 95%
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Regina International Airport (CYQR) is a controlled, tower-served airfield on the south-western edge of Regina, Saskatchewan, serving as the city's principal airport of entry with full customs facilities. It offers two long, hard-surfaced runways, including one equipped with an ILS, making it a straightforward and well-equipped destination for instrument and visual flights alike. Its history stretches back to the earliest days of prairie aviation and through a major role in wartime pilot training.
Regina International Airport lies on the south-western fringe of Regina, Saskatchewan, and is operated by the Regina Airport Authority under lease from the federal government. It is designated an airport of entry, with Canada Border Services Agency officers on site able to process arriving flights, and it ranks among the busier airports in the province. For a visiting pilot it combines long paved runways, an ILS approach and a control tower with a compact, easily identifiable circuit close to the city, making it an interesting and accessible destination in the simulator.
The airport sits about 2 nautical miles south-west of the Regina city centre (roughly 7 kilometres west-south-west by road), placing it firmly within the city's local flying area. It is a towered aerodrome, with air traffic control services provided on site and coordination with area control and flight information services for arriving and departing traffic; the field is also classed as an airport of entry, meaning international arrivals are handled by Canada Border Services Agency officers.
Regina International has two physical runways, both hard-surfaced and lit. Runway 13/31 is the longer of the pair at 7,912 feet, and it carries an instrument landing system on the 13 threshold, supporting instrument approaches in poor weather. Runway 08/26 is 6,207 feet long, also hard-surfaced and lit, giving a second orientation for crosswind operations.
Regina Tower operates on 118.6 MHz, which also serves as the mandatory frequency (MF) for aerodrome traffic and doubles as the air-to-ground contact. Ground movements are handled on 121.9 MHz, and the airport ATIS broadcasts on 127 MHz. Departure and arrival services are provided on 120.1 MHz, with en-route coordination available through Winnipeg Centre on 123.8 MHz. A remote communications outlet linked to Edmonton Radio is available on 122.5 MHz. The 13/31 runway is supported by an ILS for instrument approaches.
As a towered aerodrome, arriving and departing traffic at Regina is sequenced and controlled by Regina Tower on the published tower frequency, with ground movements coordinated separately on the ground frequency; pilots should expect standard radio contact and instructions typical of a controlled Canadian airport rather than an uncontrolled overhead join.
Aviation activity in Regina dates back to August 1911, when the barnstorming pilot
, when the touring flyer known as "Lucky Bob" St. Pierre flew a Curtiss Model D biplane at the infield of Regina Exhibition Park's racetrack. Sustained local aviation began after the First World War, when Reginan Roland Groome, a returning military flying instructor, and partners established the Aerial Service Co. at a primitive field near what is now the intersection of Hill Avenue and Cameron Street in the Lakeview district; in May 1920 this became Canada's first licensed "air harbour," and Groome received the country's first commercial pilot's licence. The airport's current site was developed between 1928 and 1930, with a terminal building following in 1940. Scheduled airline service began in 1938 with Moose Jaw-based Prairie Airways, followed by Trans-Canada Air Lines in 1939. During the Second World War the Regina Flying Club conducted contract training for the Royal Canadian Air Force, and the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan saw the formation of No. 15 Elementary Flying Training School and RCAF Station Regina at the airport on 11 November 1940; the school operated until it closed on 11 August 1944, and the site later served briefly as a release centre for demobilising airmen in November 1945. A relief landing field for the wartime station was located north of the city at Brora. Post-war, a new terminal was built in 1960 and substantially renovated in 1983-86, with further major expansion from 2004 increasing passenger capacity.
