NoneCA 🇨🇦 Closed Airport
CA-0020
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- ft
CA-AB
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Loading...GPS Code: Not available
Local Code: Not available
Location: 56.116665° N, -111.76667° E
Continent: NA
Type: Closed Airport
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The aerodrome was officially decommissioned and its identifier (CA-0020) was deleted from the Canada Flight Supplement (CFS) and other aeronautical publications effective October 18, 2012. This was announced in NAV CANADA's Aeronautical Information Circular (AIC) 25/12.
The airport was closed because it was no longer required for the operational needs of its operator, the Government of Alberta (specifically, the ministry responsible for forestry and wildfire management). These types of remote airstrips were often built to support fire lookout towers. The closure was likely due to a combination of factors: a shift in wildfire management strategy towards aerial patrols and greater use of helicopters (which do not require runways), improved road access to the area, or the decommissioning of the Algar Lookout Tower itself. The cost of maintaining a remote, seldom-used airstrip became unjustifiable once its primary purpose was obsolete.
The site is an abandoned and unmaintained airstrip. Satellite imagery of the coordinates shows a faint but clear outline of the former north-south runway. The surface is overgrown with grass and shrubs and is being reclaimed by the surrounding boreal forest. It is completely unsuitable for any aircraft operations. The land is provincial Crown land, and the site remains a remote, undeveloped location accessible only by forestry or service roads.
Algar Tower Airport was a remote forestry airstrip whose primary function was to provide logistical support for the Algar Lookout Tower, a key installation in Alberta's wildfire detection network. It was a simple gravel or turf runway designed for use by rugged, Short Take-Off and Landing (STOL) capable aircraft. Operations consisted mainly of transporting fire tower personnel, delivering supplies and equipment, and providing access for maintenance crews. During active wildfire seasons, it could have also served as a forward operating base or staging area for smaller aircraft involved in firefighting, such as bird-dog planes that direct air tankers.
There are no known plans or prospects for reopening Algar Tower Airport. The original strategic purpose for the airstrip no longer exists. Modern wildfire management and remote industrial operations in the region rely heavily on helicopters, which offer greater flexibility and do not require prepared runways. The cost to clear, regrade, and certify the airstrip to modern standards would be substantial and lacks any economic or operational justification. For these reasons, the prospect of reopening is considered effectively zero.
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