Aibetsu Airport

Economic failure. Aibetsu Airport was a 'Nōdō Airport' (農道空港), or 'farm-road airfield'. These were built under a government agricultural development scheme to transport high-value produce quickly and to support aerial crop spraying. The concept proved to be economically unviable; the cost of air freight was far too high compared to conventional trucking, and the anticipated demand never materialized. The lack of use and high maintenance costs led to its abandonment as an aviation facility.

The site has been completely repurposed and is no longer an airport. The former runway is now the 'Aibetsu Motor Test Course' (愛別モーターテストコース), used for vehicle performance testing, driving schools, and automotive events. Additionally, a significant portion of the land, primarily at the southern end of the old runway, has been converted into the Aibetsu Solar Power Plant, which is covered with a large array of photovoltaic panels.

The airport, officially named Aibetsu Town Farm Road Landing and Takeoff Strip (愛別町農道離着陸場), was a product of Japan's 1980s-90s public works boom. Its primary purpose was to serve the agricultural community of Aibetsu and the surrounding Kamikawa region. It featured a single 800-meter (2,625 ft) paved runway intended for light aircraft like Cessnas. The plan was for these planes to transport fresh produce, such as asparagus and melons, to urban centers like Tokyo and Osaka, and to conduct aerial spraying. Along with other Nōdō airports in Hokkaido, it is now remembered as a prominent example of a failed and wasteful public works project, as it was never used for its intended commercial purpose.

There are zero plans or prospects for reopening the site as an airport. The original concept was a well-documented economic failure, and the land has been successfully and profitably repurposed for automotive and renewable energy uses. A return to aviation is considered impossible.