Departure
89%
vs 95% ▼ 6
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Méribel Altiport is a small, dramatically sited mountain airfield above the village of Les Allues in Savoie, serving the Méribel ski resort at over 5,600 feet. Operated by the Méribel Air Club, it is a classic French altiport whose sloped runway demands specific mountain-flying qualification, and it remains active for light aircraft and helicopter leisure flying.
Méribel Altiport is a mountain airfield built to serve the Méribel ski resort in the Trois Vallées area of the French Alps. Owned and operated by the Méribel Air Club, it is used for leisure and tourism flying, light aircraft and helicopters, and is one of the network of French altiports built in the 1960s to bring aviation directly to the winter sports valleys. For a simulator pilot it is a striking short-field, sloped-runway challenge set among high alpine terrain.
The altiport lies in the commune of Les Allues, in Savoie, within the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of France, close to the Méribel ski resort in the Trois Vallées. The field sits at high altitude in mountainous terrain and is not controlled; there is no ATC service, and traffic self-announces on the local frequency.
The altiport has a single physical runway, 15/33, 1,333 feet long with a hard surface. It is a classic altiport runway with a significant slope, so aircraft land uphill on runway 33 and take off downhill on runway 15, regardless of wind. Field elevation is 5,591 feet.
There is no air traffic control at Méribel Altiport; pilots operate on a self-information basis. Wikipedia gives the local communications frequency as 118.755 MHz. There is no ILS or other instrument approach.
As an altiport with a steeply sloped runway, Méribel requires pilots to hold specific mountain-flying qualification before operating there, given the demanding terrain and the one-way nature of operations: landing uphill on runway 33 and departing downhill on runway 15. Communications are conducted on a self-information basis rather than through a controlling authority.
The altiport sits immediately above the Méribel ski resort in the Trois Vallées, with the runway climbing up the mountainside above the village, making the resort's chalets, pistes and lift infrastructure the principal visual references when approaching the field.
Méribel Altiport was inaugurated on 29 January 1962 by Joseph Szydlowski, president of Turboméca, and Michel Ziegler, son of Henri Ziegler; the term "altiport" itself is said to have been coined at this event. The following day, 30 January 1962, saw the first-ever landing at a French winter sports resort here, one day ahead of the first landing at the altiport of Courchevel. The altiport's early history is closely tied to the airline Air Alpes.
The altiport is owned and operated by the Méribel Air Club and continues to be used for leisure and tourism flying, including light aircraft and helicopters. It remains an uncontrolled field operating on a self-information basis, and its sloped runway means pilots require specific altiport qualification to land and depart safely.