Airport comments for Canada

Comments 1,826 to 1,841 of 1,841

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Poor food

Montreal's a great city for food, but don't bother with the airport -- there's not much there, especially once you're through security. Bring something with you.

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Intl/domestic transfers

They make you go out into the public area and then line up for security again when transferring from an international to a domestic flight -- it can be pretty frustrating when the security lineup is long and you have a tight connection.

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Landing fees

Unfortunately, CYUL has brought in landing fees for private planes as of 2007. I think it's around $40 or so even for a light single (!!!).

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Good fuel stop

This airport is a good fuel stop for private planes -- there's no landing fee, and no ramp fee if you're staying only a short time. There's an ILS and a *very* long runway (an old NORAD runway) for bad weather, and Sudbury is close by as an alternate.

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Tie-downs

The tie-downs for private aircraft are behind the old firehall, but there are only a few. You can also chock the plane on the ramp in front of the FBO. There's no landing fee for light aircraft if you buy gas, but they do charge around $13 or so/night for parking no matter where you park.

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Free tie-downs for visitors

The last time I was in Kingston, they still weren't charging visitors for overnight tie-down. There are cables you can tie to on the apron in front of the Kingston Flying Club.

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Nice airport

This is one of the nicest airports in Canada for flying to a big city, either commercially or in a private plane. It's unbelievably quiet considering how close it is Toronto freeways, and you can actually walk downtown after taking the little ferry across.

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Wind turbines

If you're a pilot, watch for the wind turbines on the hills to your right on departure from 30. I've had to refuse a right turn after departure because I wasn't climbing fast enough for obstacle clearance (a left turn towards the U.S. is much easier, if you need to head east).

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Cafeteria open again

There is an airport cafeteria operating again. It also sells magazines, including flying pubs.

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Night landings

When the wind is light, most pilots land on runway 09 at night instead of 27 -- that way, they can land on the lit part, and overrun onto the unlit part if necessary.

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BBQ

There's a BBQ going most of the time in the summer with hamburgers (and veggie burgers, I think).

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Ground transportation

The OCTranspo 97 bus is a fast bus to downtown, and then on to the Bayshore Shopping Centre in the west end, mostly on a dedicated express Transitway (about a 25 minute ride). The schedule varies from every 9 minutes or so at peak times to every 30 minutes in the wee hours of the morning, and the adult fare is $3.00 cash or $1.90 if you buy tickets. You can transfer to the 95 for the train station.

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Landing fees

For private single-engine light aircraft, CAD $15/landing or a flat fee of CAD $30/month. Nav Canada will also introduce a fee for each takeoff, starting in 2008.

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Electrical outlets

The new terminal has lots of electrical outlets for laptops, etc. in the waiting areas -- they're on the pillars at the ends of some rows.

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IFR

CYRP does not have an instrument approach, but some pilots shoot an approach to Gatineau (about 4-5 miles away) then break off and scud run over. I'd want a pretty good ceiling to try that, and wouldn't even consider it at night. Fortunately, CYOW is also close, and has two ILS's.

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Self-serve fuel

I have read that they've recently added a 24-hour self-serve AvGas pump, but I haven't had a chance to try it yet.