Yahk Aerodrome

Military Decommissioning. The primary reason for closure was the end of World War II. As a purpose-built training facility for the BCATP, its operational need ceased with the conclusion of the war and the subsequent shutdown of the massive aircrew training program on March 31, 1945.

The site is no longer used for aviation and has been repurposed for industrial and recreational use. The land is now home to the Yahk-Kingsgate Industrial Park. A significant portion of the site is occupied by a Stella-Jones Inc. wood utility pole treating plant. The original wartime hangars and buildings are gone, replaced by modern industrial structures. One of the original runways has been maintained and is actively used as a dragstrip by the Kootenay Dragway Association, hosting drag racing events during the summer months. The ghostly outlines of the other two runways of the original triangular layout are still clearly visible in satellite imagery, though they are overgrown and deteriorated.

Yahk Aerodrome was constructed during World War II as part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP), a massive joint military aircrew training program. Officially known as RCAF Station Yahk, it served as a Relief Landing Field (R1) for No. 7 Service Flying Training School (SFTS), which was based at RCAF Station Fort Macleod, Alberta. Its primary role was to provide an auxiliary airfield for emergency landings and to relieve air traffic congestion at the main training base. Student pilots training on advanced aircraft, such as the Avro Anson, would have used Yahk for circuits, landings, and other training exercises. The airfield was constructed in the standard triangular pattern with three runways, a design characteristic of most BCATP airfields, which is still visible from the air today.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening Yahk Aerodrome for aviation purposes. The infrastructure is significantly degraded, the site is now zoned and developed for industrial use, and its proximity to other active airports, such as Cranbrook/Canadian Rockies International Airport (CYXC), makes its revival as an aerodrome highly improbable.