Keg Tower Airport

The airport's closure was a direct result of technological and strategic changes in wildfire management. Its sole purpose was to provide logistical support to the Keg Fire Lookout Tower. The closure was driven by:
1. **Obsolescence:** The Alberta government shifted from a network of fixed, manned lookout towers to more modern and cost-effective methods of fire detection, such as aerial patrols, satellite imagery, and public reporting.
2. **Economic Factors:** As the associated fire tower was decommissioned or its role reduced, the significant cost of maintaining a remote airstrip could no longer be justified.

The site is completely abandoned and has been reclaimed by nature. Satellite imagery of the coordinates shows a faint but clear outline of a north-south oriented runway that is now entirely overgrown with grass, shrubs, and young trees. The airstrip is unmaintained and completely unusable for any form of aviation. The surrounding area is remote Crown land, managed for forestry and conservation, with no remaining infrastructure visible at the airport site.

Keg Tower Airport was a vital, though small, component of Alberta's mid-20th century wildfire management infrastructure. Its significance was purely functional:
- **Primary Operation:** It served as the dedicated airstrip for the Keg Fire Lookout Tower, one of many towers in the vast boreal forests of northern Alberta.
- **Logistical Hub:** The airstrip handled light aircraft, such as the de Havilland Beaver or Cessna 180/185, which were essential for transporting personnel (tower observers), food, water, fuel, and equipment to the remote site.
- **Emergency Use:** During active wildfire events in the region, the strip could have been used as a forward staging area for command staff or initial attack crews.
It represents a bygone era of forest management that relied on a network of isolated outposts connected by air.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening Keg Tower Airport. The original purpose for its existence is now obsolete, and there is no new commercial, industrial, or governmental need for an airstrip in this specific remote location. The cost to clear, restore, and maintain the runway to any usable standard would be prohibitive and without any practical justification. The prospect for reopening is effectively zero.