Trout Lake Airport

Replacement and obsolescence. The old Trout Lake Airport (CA-1031) was a basic, unpaved bush strip with significant operational limitations. It was replaced by the modern, all-weather Sambaa K'e Airport (CEY9), which was constructed a few kilometers to the southwest. The new airport provided the community with a longer (1,070 m / 3,510 ft), better-maintained gravel runway, modern lighting systems (ARCAL), and improved safety features, ensuring reliable, year-round air access for larger aircraft, medevac services, and scheduled flights, which was not possible with the old strip.

The site of the former airport is abandoned and decommissioned for aviation purposes. Satellite imagery shows a distinct linear feature where the runway once was, located along the shore of Trout Lake. The strip is now significantly overgrown with grass and shrubs and appears to be partially used as a local unpaved road or trail by the community. There are no remaining aviation facilities, markings, or infrastructure.

For many years, the Trout Lake Airport (CA-1031) was the primary and often sole transportation link for the remote First Nations community of Sambaa K'e (formerly known as Trout Lake). It was a vital lifeline for the delivery of essential goods, including mail, food, and supplies, as well as providing critical passenger and medical evacuation (medevac) services. Operations were limited to smaller, rugged bush planes capable of landing on short, unprepared surfaces, such as the de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter, Cessna 208 Caravan, and similar STOL (Short Take-Off and Landing) aircraft. Its existence was fundamental to the community's connection with the outside world before the construction of the new airport and the all-season road.

Effectively zero. There are no known plans or logical prospects for reopening the old airport. The community is now well-served by the superior Sambaa K'e Airport (CEY9), which meets modern aviation standards. All government funding and operational focus is directed towards maintaining and upgrading the new airport. The old site is physically unsuitable for modern aviation and serves no purpose now that a replacement facility exists.