Departure
96%
vs 95% ▲ 1
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Vancouver International Airport (CYVR) sits on Sea Island in Richmond, British Columbia, just south of downtown Vancouver, and is Canada's principal gateway to the Pacific Rim. For the visiting VFR or IFR pilot it offers a full set of long, hard-surfaced runways with ILS coverage, a busy multi-frequency ATC environment, and a distinctive island setting bounded by dykes and the Fraser River delta.
Vancouver International Airport lies on Sea Island, within the city of Richmond, and serves as the main airport for Vancouver and the wider Lower Mainland of British Columbia. It is operated by the Vancouver Airport Authority, a nonprofit organisation, and functions as Canada's principal transpacific hub, acting as a base for Air Canada, WestJet and Pacific Coastal Airlines. For a simulator pilot it is a rewarding destination thanks to its scale, its mix of parallel and crosswind runways, and its position amid water on almost every side, including a dedicated terminal for scheduled floatplanes.
The airport occupies Sea Island, a low-lying delta island protected by a 22-kilometre system of dykes, about 12 kilometres from Downtown Vancouver. As one of Canada's busiest airports it sits within controlled airspace with a full range of air traffic control services, and pilots should expect to operate under positive control from approach through to the ground movement area.
CYVR has three physical runway pairs. The main parallel runway, 08R/26L, is a hard-surfaced, lit runway approximately 11,476 feet long with ILS serving both directions. Its parallel counterpart, 08L/26R, is a hard-surfaced, lit runway of around 9,930 feet with ILS also available on both approach directions. The crosswind runway, 13/31, is a hard-surfaced, lit strip of about 7,490 feet, with ILS provided on the 13 approach. Field elevation is 7 feet.
Radio services include Vancouver Tower on 118.7 MHz and Ground on 121.7 MHz, with ATIS broadcast on 124.6 MHz. Approach control operates on 128.6 MHz and Departure on 126.125 MHz. Clearance delivery is available on 121.4 MHz, and Pacific Radio can be reached via the remote communications outlet on 123.15 MHz. Instrument approaches are supported by ILS on runways 08R, 26L, 08L, 26R and 13.
The airport's setting on Sea Island, ringed by the Fraser River's North and Middle Arms and protected by dyke systems, makes the island itself the primary visual reference for pilots approaching from any direction, with downtown Vancouver's skyline clearly visible to the northeast.
The City of Vancouver purchased land on Sea Island in 1929 to establish an airport, replacing an earlier grass airstrip at Minoru Park on Lulu Island. The airport opened on 22 July 1931. During the Second World War it was leased to the federal government and operated as RCAF Station Sea Island under the Department of National Defence and the Department of Transport, forming part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan; aircrew and their families were housed in a purpose-built townsite on the island named Burkeville, after Boeing president Stanley Burke. Lease revenue was used to fund new hangars and a production plant for Boeing Aircraft of Canada. The present main terminal was completed in 1968 and later expanded into separate domestic and international sections, and a north runway was added in 1996. A United States border pre-clearance facility, established in the 1970s, has grown to have the longest operating hours of any such facility.
Vancouver International remains Canada's second busiest airport by passenger traffic and its main hub for transpacific services, acting as a base for Air Canada, WestJet and Pacific Coastal Airlines. It holds one of the largest-hours United States border pre-clearance operations of any airport, and is among the few major international airports with a dedicated terminal for scheduled floatplane services. The airport has repeatedly been recognised as a top-rated North American airport in industry awards.
