Cape Christian Airport

NoneCA 🇨🇦 Closed Airport

ICAO

CA-0076

IATA

-

Elevation

- ft

Region

CA-NU

Local Time

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Airport Information

GPS Code: Not available

Local Code: Not available

Location: 70.51667° N, -68.300003° E

Continent: NA

Type: Closed Airport

Terminal Information Not Available
Terminal arrivals and departures are only available for airports with scheduled commercial service and IATA codes.

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Airport Information

Airport Closure Information

Last updated: Jul 24, 2025
Closure Date

Approximately 1992

Reason for Closure

The airport was closed due to military decommissioning. Its sole purpose was to serve the Cape Christian Distant Early Warning (DEW) Line station, designated FOX-4. With the end of the Cold War and the replacement of the DEW Line with the more modern North Warning System (NWS), the station and its supporting airstrip became obsolete and were deactivated.

Current Status

The airport is abandoned and decommissioned. The site of the former DEW Line station, including the airstrip, has undergone extensive environmental cleanup and remediation managed by the Canadian Department of National Defence to remove hazardous materials like PCBs and fuel contaminants left from its operational period. While the long gravel runway is still clearly visible from satellite imagery, it is unmaintained, not certified for use, and considered unusable for any regular aviation. The entire area is an abandoned military site with no remaining infrastructure or services.

Historical Significance

Cape Christian Airport was a critical logistical hub during the Cold War. Constructed in the mid-1950s as part of the DEW Line project, its primary function was to facilitate the construction and resupply of the FOX-4 radar station. The gravel runway was built to accommodate large, heavy-lift military transport aircraft, such as the Douglas C-124 Globemaster II and later the Lockheed C-130 Hercules. These aircraft ferried personnel, fuel, construction materials, food, and sensitive electronic equipment to the remote arctic site. The airport was an essential link in the continental air defense network, ensuring the 24/7 operation of the radar station which was designed to provide early warning of a potential Soviet bomber attack over the North Pole.

Reopening Prospects

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening Cape Christian Airport. Its original military purpose is gone, and there is no economic or logistical need for a second airport in the area. The nearby community of Clyde River, Nunavut, is served by the certified Clyde River Airport (IATA: YCY, ICAO: CYCY), which handles all regional passenger and cargo flights. Reopening and maintaining the remote Cape Christian airstrip would be prohibitively expensive and is considered redundant.

Nearby Airports

Clyde River Airport
YCY • CYCY
Clyde River, CA
Small Airport Scheduled Service
~9 km away
Clyde River Water Aerodrome
CA-0575
Clyde River, CA
Closed Airport
~12 km away
Distances are approximate and calculated as straight-line distances.

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