Smith River Airport

The airport closed due to military and strategic obsolescence combined with economic factors. Its primary purpose as a refueling and emergency stop on the Northwest Staging Route ended with World War II. Post-war, the high cost of maintaining a remote airfield for very little traffic was not justifiable, and advances in aircraft technology and range made such intermediate strips unnecessary.

The site is an abandoned and unmaintained airstrip. Satellite imagery confirms its location and shows a distinct gravel runway that is now heavily overgrown with grass, shrubs, and small trees. There are no remaining airport buildings, markings, or infrastructure. The land is undeveloped and not used for any formal purpose.

This airfield was a historically significant component of the Northwest Staging Route (NWSR), a chain of airfields built through Canada to Alaska during World War II. Its primary function was to support the Lend-Lease program, enabling the ferrying of thousands of American-built military aircraft (fighters, bombers, and transports) to Alaska and the Soviet Union. The Smith River strip served as a crucial landing and refueling point in the remote wilderness of northern British Columbia, Canada, ensuring the safe passage of aircraft along the route.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening the airport. The significant cost required to clear, restore, and certify the runway, coupled with a lack of any modern strategic or economic demand, makes its revival extremely unlikely. The limited aviation needs of the remote area are served by other small airstrips.