Shingle Point DEW Line Station

The closure was due to military and technological obsolescence. Shingle Point was a 'Gap Filler' radar station, designed to cover low-altitude gaps between main radar sites. These smaller, unmanned stations became redundant in 1963 due to advancements in the main DEW Line radar systems that improved coverage. Subsequently, the entire DEW Line system was replaced by the more advanced and automated North Warning System (NWS) between 1985 and 1993, which required fewer sites. Shingle Point was not incorporated into the NWS and was formally decommissioned.

The site is abandoned and has undergone extensive environmental remediation. Following its decommissioning, the Canadian Department of National Defence, in partnership with Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, led a major cleanup project to demolish buildings, remove hazardous materials (such as PCBs from electrical equipment and fuel from storage tanks), and remediate contaminated soil. The gravel airstrip remains visible in satellite imagery but is unmaintained, partially overgrown, and considered unusable for any aviation purposes. The area is now a remediated former industrial site located within the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, with no permanent infrastructure or population.

Shingle Point DEW Line Station, designated BAR-B, was a component of the Distant Early Warning (DEW) Line, a joint US-Canadian network of radar stations built across the high Arctic during the Cold War to provide early warning of a Soviet bomber attack. As a 'Gap Filler' site, its specific role was to provide low-altitude radar coverage in the gap between the main stations at Komakuk Beach, YT (BAR-A) and Tuktoyaktuk, NWT (BAR-C). The 3,100-foot gravel airstrip was essential for the station's construction and logistical support, handling light and medium transport aircraft (like the C-47 Skytrain) that delivered personnel, fuel, and supplies to the remote location. The DEW Line represented a massive technological and geopolitical undertaking that profoundly impacted the Arctic's environment and its Indigenous peoples.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening the airstrip. Its original military purpose is obsolete, and there is no economic or demographic driver for a civilian airport at this remote location. The nearest communities, such as Aklavik and Inuvik, are served by their own airports. The significant cost of rebuilding and maintaining aviation infrastructure in the harsh Arctic environment, combined with the site's remediated status and its location within ecologically sensitive Indigenous lands, makes any future reopening extremely unlikely.