Departure
95%
vs 95%
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Paris-Le Bourget, ICAO LFPB, lies a few miles north-northeast of central Paris and was once the French capital's principal airport before its role was superseded by Orly and then Charles de Gaulle. Today it is one of Europe's busiest business aviation hubs, home to the Paris Air Show and the Musée de l'air et de l'espace, and offers the sim pilot a chance to fly into a Class D field steeped in aviation history.
Le Bourget is a large, historic airport situated within the communes of Le Bourget, Bonneuil-en-France, Dugny and Gonesse, on the northern fringe of the Paris conurbation. Having served as the city's main airport for much of the twentieth century, it is now dedicated to general and business aviation, making it a popular destination for corporate and private flights arriving in the Paris area. Its long runways, ILS approaches and rich heritage, including the adjoining Musée de l'air et de l'espace, make it a distinctive field for a simulator pilot to explore.
The aerodrome operates as a Class D airspace field and lies close to Paris–Charles de Gaulle Airport, with which it shares approach and departure control: both the approach and departure frequencies are identified with the callsign "De Gaulle", reflecting the integration of Le Bourget into the wider Paris terminal airspace structure. It sits roughly 6 nautical miles north-northeast of central Paris.
Le Bourget has three physical hard-surfaced runways, all lit. Runway 07/25 is the longest, with the 07 threshold offering 8817 ft and the 25 threshold 6882 ft, and both ends equipped with ILS. Runway 03/21 offers 7862 ft from the 03 threshold and 8736 ft from the 21 threshold, with no ILS listed. Runway 09/27 is 5931 ft from each threshold, with ILS available on runway 27. Field elevation is 161 ft.
Radio services include Tower on 118.925 MHz, Ground on 121.9 MHz, and a Pre-flight information frequency (PFLT) on 121.95 MHz. Approach is provided on 121.15 MHz and 136.275 MHz, both under the callsign "De Gaulle Approach", and Departure on 124.35 MHz under "De Gaulle Departure", reflecting the shared control arrangement with the neighbouring Charles de Gaulle airport. ATIS is broadcast on 120 MHz. Instrument approaches are available, with ILS serving runways 07, 25 and 27.
The Musée de l'air et de l'espace, adjoining the airport at Le Bourget, is a prominent landmark useful for orientation when approaching the field, alongside the airport's proximity to Charles de Gaulle Airport and the northern edge of the Paris built-up area.
Le Bourget's Art Deco terminal building was designed by architect Georges Labro following a 1935 competition organised by the Air Ministry, with interior decoration involving the painter Lucien Martial. The airport has witnessed notable events in aviation and political history: in 1939 Howard Hughes landed here on the second nonstop flight from New York to Paris before continuing to Moscow, and in June 1940 Adolf Hitler began his only tour of occupied Paris from Le Bourget. In 1961 the Soviet ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev defected at the airport. The Paris Air Show, first held at Le Bourget in 1953 after previous venues at the Grand Palais and Orly, remains strongly associated with the field, and the Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety (BEA) is headquartered on the airport grounds.
Le Bourget is now used exclusively for general and business aviation, having relinquished scheduled passenger traffic to Orly and Charles de Gaulle. It is described as the leading business aviation airport in Europe, handling large numbers of private and corporate aircraft movements each year across its three runways. The Musée de l'air et de l'espace, located within the airport boundary, adds to its character as a destination combining active flying operations with aviation heritage.