YLW 75th anniversary

Kelowna International Airport’s story began when local residents voted in favour of purchasing the 320-acre Dickson Ranch in Ellison in 1946. Without the support of the local community, YLW could have never grown into what it is today. 

Kelowna International Airport took off in 1947 with the first flight happening in the late fall with a Piper Cub. The Terminal Building officially opened in 1949 with a small terminal building, a 3,000-foot-long grass airstrip and a variety of small aircraft.

During the 1950s, demand for increased service prompted the federal Department of Transport to help gravel the airstrip and pave the parking lot and aircraft parking apron.

The first major expansion of the airport was the result of a partnership between former Mayor R.F. Parkinson and Grant McConachie of Canadian Pacific Airways. Grant (a futurist) believed Kelowna would become a key city in the region one day. Canadian Pacific Airlines became the first airline to service Kelowna with return flights to Vancouver. Because of this partnership, Mayor Parkinson was able to obtain funding from Ottawa for the first expansion of the YLW runway.

Mayor Parkinson, an avid supporter of aviation and its economic benefits to the Okanagan, spearheaded the upgrade to the runway extending it to 5,350 feet. The increased traffic this brought prompted local leaders to raise funding for construction of a new air terminal building at the south end of the runway.

With so much increased traffic, there was a need to build a new air traffic control tower, along with an on-site weather office. This tower is still in use today as an Emergency Coordination Center. The original tower was built on the flat deck of a truck.

More people. More planes. More hangars to service them in. In the 1980’s we saw such incredible growth that Kelowna Flightcraft (KF Aerospace), YLW's oldest tenant, had to add four new hangers to keep up with it. 

The Okanagan kept on growing, and so YLW needed to keep up with the times. To facilitate the growth happening in local industries and communities, the airport needed to expand as well. In 1990, the runway extended to 7,300 feet with great support from MP Al Horning and former Mayor James Stuart.

In 1996 WestJet commenced service with YLW as one of five inaugural launch cities. The discount airfares resulted in traffic levels growing so quickly that major investments in the Terminal Building had to made. By the year 2000, the building had doubled in size to accommodate the growth.

With such a high demand from travellers flying between Toronto and Kelowna, Air Canada began its non-stop service to Toronto in 2002. This not only created a connection between our two cities but allowed visitors to come from around the world to enjoy the Okanagan.

After 61 trips around the sun, it was time to start making trips around the globe. In 2008 YLW’s runway was extended to 8,900 feet, which made flights beyond North America possible. This expansion took YLW from continental to intercontinental.

With more routes came even more travellers, and by 2018 YLW was breaking records and eclipsed the 2.06 million passenger mark.

75 trips around the sun and YLW keeps on growing as demand from travellers and local businesses continues to increase.  As we continue to grow YLW is constantly finding new and innovative ways to improve the customer experience.  We look forward to serving the Okanagan for the next 75 years and beyond!