Departure
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MY FS FLIGHTS
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Toronto Lester B. Pearson International Airport (CYYZ/YYZ) is Canada's busiest airport, lying at an elevation of 545 feet in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario. For a simulator pilot it presents one of the most demanding airline-hub environments in North America, with five parallel and crossing runways, full ILS coverage on every threshold, and a dense multi-frequency air traffic control structure.
Toronto Lester B. Pearson International Airport, identified by the ICAO code CYYZ and IATA code YYZ, is Canada's largest and busiest airport, situated at an elevation of 545 feet in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario. It takes its name from Lester B. Pearson, a former Prime Minister of Canada, and was long known simply as Malton Airport after the local community in which it was built. For a flight simulator pilot, Pearson offers a genuinely demanding hub environment: ten separate runway ends across five physical runways, every one of them equipped with an instrument landing system, and a busy layered airspace structure typical of a major international gateway.
The airport is located at approximately 43.6761 N, 79.6305 W, within the Toronto terminal area in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario. As a major international hub, CYYZ sits inside controlled airspace served by Toronto Terminal and Toronto Centre, with dedicated departure, approach and ground control services covering the field and its surrounding traffic. The airport was historically known as Malton, after the community of that name, before being renamed in honour of Lester B. Pearson.
Pearson has five physical runways, all with hard surfaces, lit, and equipped with ILS on every direction. Runway 15L/33R is the longest at 11,038 feet. Runway 05/23 measures 10,967 feet on the 05 threshold and 10,618 feet on the 23 threshold. Runway 06L/24R runs 9,568 feet from the 06L end and 9,544 feet from 24R. Runway 06R/24L is 8,992 feet in both directions. Runway 15R/33L is the shortest pairing, at 8,484 feet from 15R and 8,492 feet from 33L.
Pearson operates two control towers, on 118.35 MHz and 118.7 MHz. Ground movement is split across 119.1 MHz, 121.65 MHz and 121.9 MHz, with ramp control on 122.075 MHz and pad control on 131.17 MHz. Clearance delivery is on 121.3 MHz, and ATIS is broadcast on 112.15 MHz. Arriving traffic is worked by Toronto Approach on 124.475 MHz, while departures are handled by Toronto Departure on 127.575 MHz and 128.8 MHz. A VFR advisory frequency is available on 119.3 MHz, apron frequencies are provided on 122.07 MHz (South Apron) and 122.27 MHz (North Apron), and a remote communications outlet for London Radio is listed on 123.275 MHz. Every runway is served by an ILS.
As a large controlled international airport, Pearson does not operate a conventional visual circuit for arriving and departing traffic; aircraft are sequenced by Toronto Approach on 124.475 MHz for arrivals and by Toronto Departure on 127.575 MHz and 128.8 MHz after takeoff, with clearance delivery on 121.3 MHz used before pushback and taxi. Ground movement between the terminals and the five runways is coordinated across the three ground frequencies (119.1, 121.65 and 121.9 MHz), reflecting the size and complexity of the manoeuvring area.
Pearson began life as Malton Airport, taking its name from the surrounding community, and grew over subsequent decades into Toronto's principal airport before being renamed in honour of Lester B. Pearson, a former Prime Minister of Canada. It has since developed into the largest airport in Canada, with its runway system expanded over time to the five parallel and crossing strips in use today.
Pearson remains Canada's busiest airport and a major hub for scheduled airline traffic, with all five of its runways lit and equipped with ILS for all-weather operations. It is also a popular destination among flight simulation pilots, serving as a home base for a substantial number of virtual aviators drawn to its complex layout and heavy traffic flows.
