Stuart Island Water Aerodrome

Administrative de-registration. The closure was not due to an accident, military conversion, or physical obstruction. The most likely reason is that the private operator, the Stuart Island Lodge, decided to no longer maintain the official registration with Transport Canada. This is a common practice for small, private facilities where the administrative burden and cost of maintaining an official registered status outweigh the benefits, especially when operations consist of pre-arranged private charters that can operate safely at an unregistered site.

The physical site remains fully active as a private seaplane base. The coordinates point directly to the docks of the Stuart Island Lodge in Big Bay. Satellite imagery and photos from the lodge's website confirm that the docks are well-maintained and frequently used by seaplanes. While it is no longer an officially registered aerodrome with Transport Canada, it continues to serve its original purpose as the primary point of arrival and departure for guests of the lodge. It is now considered a private, unregistered aerodrome.

The aerodrome's identifier, CA-0539, corresponded to the seaplane dock and water landing area in Big Bay, directly serving the exclusive Stuart Island Lodge. When active as a registered aerodrome, it was a vital transportation link for the high-end tourism industry in the remote Discovery Islands region of British Columbia. It primarily handled floatplane operations (such as De Havilland Beavers and Otters, and Cessna aircraft on floats) carrying guests, staff, and supplies to the lodge. Charter flights originated from regional hubs like Vancouver, Victoria, Campbell River, and Seattle, making the otherwise inaccessible wilderness lodge reachable for international clientele.

There are no known plans or prospects for the site to be officially re-registered as a public or private aerodrome. Since the location continues to function effectively for its intended purpose as a private landing site for the lodge's charter traffic, there is little operational or financial incentive for the owners to undergo the process of re-registration with Transport Canada.