Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport[1] Aéroport international Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau de Montréal
File:238290248 fa0a4aa417.jpg
IATA: YUL ICAO: CYUL
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	Transport Canada[2]
Operator	Aéroports de Montréal
Serves	Montreal, Quebec
Location	Dorval, Quebec
Elevation AMSL	118 ft / 36 m
Coordinates	45°28′14″N 073°44′27″W / 45.47056°N 73.74083°W / 45.47056; -73.74083
Website	www.admtl.com
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 06L/24R 11,000 3,353 Asphalt/Concrete 06R/24L 9,600 2,926 Asphalt/Concrete 10/28 7,000 2,134 Asphalt/Concrete
Statistics (2006)
Aircraft Movements 213,403 Number of Passengers 11,434,070
Aircraft statistics from Transport Canada.[3] Passenger statistics from Aéroports de Montréal.[4]

Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport (IATA: YUL, ICAO: CYUL) (French: Aéroport international Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau de Montréal) or Montréal-Trudeau, formerly known as Montréal-Dorval International Airport, is located in the city of Dorval, on the Island of Montreal and is 20 km from Montreal's downtown core. It is an international airport that serves the Greater Montreal Area, along with the regions of Northern Vermont and New York.^{[citation needed]}

The airport is managed and operated by Aéroports de Montréal (ADM), a non-profit corporation without share capital. It is the busiest airport in the province of Quebec, one of Canada's busiest airports by passenger traffic and the fourth busiest airport in Canada by aircraft movements, with 11,434,070^[4] passengers and 213,403^[3] aircraft movements in 2006. It is one of 8 Canadian airports with United States border preclearance and is one of the main gateways into Canada with 59% of its passengers being on non-domestic flights. The Montreal-Paris route is one of the busiest in the Trans-Atlantic crossing, with just over 1 million passengers a year.^{[citation needed]} It is one of four Air Canada hubs.

Airlines servicing Trudeau offer flights to Africa, Asia, Central America, South America, the Caribbean, Europe, the United States, Mexico and other destinations within Canada. It is the only Canadian airport that offers non-stop service to Africa and it also contains the 2nd largest duty free shop in North America.^{[citation needed]}

The airport is headquarters for several airlines: Air Canada, the country's largest; Air Transat and was formerly the headquarters of the now defunct Jetsgo.

History

Early days

The birth of Dorval Airport goes back to the beginning of the 1940s. At the time, it was becoming clear that the Saint-Hubert Airport (Montreal's first official airport, in operation since 1927) could no longer meet the city's growing aviation needs. The Minister of Transport purchased the land at the Dorval Race Track, thus ensuring the best possible location for the new airport.

Montréal-Dorval International Airport went into operation on September 1, 1941 with three paved runways. By 1946, the airport was already hosting more than a quarter of a million passengers a year. This number grew to more than a million by the mid-1950s. At the time, it was the busiest airport in Canada. Dorval played an important role in the development of transatlantic aviation. It was primarily chosen as an airport because of good weather and few foggy days. During World War II it was the major transit point for departures to Europe. Thousands of Allied aircraft passed through Dorval on the way to England. Women - the WACs (Women's Air Corps) - played a major role in transiting aircraft to the war theatres by way of Dorval. At one time Dorval was the major transatlantic hub for commercial aviation and the busiest airport in Canada with airlines such as British Overseas Airways Corporation (B.O.A.C) landing at Dorval en route to New York.

Growth

In November of 1960, the airport was renamed Aéroport international Dorval de Montréal. On December 15 of that year, the Minister of Transport inaugurated a new 30 million dollar terminal. It was the largest terminal in Canada and one of the biggest in the world. Montréal-Dorval International Airport was the gateway to Canada for all European air traffic, serving more than two million passengers a year.

Eight years later, Montréal-Dorval International Airport underwent a major expansion program.

The federal government predicted that Dorval would be completely saturated by 1985, and also projected that 20 million passengers would be passing through Montreal's airports annually. They decided to construct a new airport in Sainte-Scholastique (Mirabel). As the first phase in the transition that would eventually see Dorval closed (perhaps for redevelopment), international flights were to be transferred to the new airport in 1975.

The opening and closing of Mirabel Airport

On November 29, 1975, Montréal-Mirabel International Airport went into service. With an operations zone of 7,000 hectares and a buffer zone of 29,000 hectares, it became the largest airport in the world. All international flights, and many connecting flights to major Canadian centres, were transferred to Montréal-Mirabel International Airport. Twenty-three international airlines moved their overseas activities to Montréal-Mirabel International Airport. As a consequence, the mission of Montréal-Dorval International Airport was redefined to encompass domestic flights and flights to the United States.

In the years that followed, a new economy emerged on a continental scale. Dorval's traffic decreased due to the advent of 1980s of longer-range jets that did not need to refuel in Montreal before crossing the Atlantic. Montreal's economic decline in the late 1970s and 1980s had a significant effect on the airport's traffic, as international flights shifted away from Dorval to Toronto Pearson of more prosperous Toronto. Lastly, international airlines, faced with the stark economic reality of operating two Canadian points of entry, opted to overfly Montreal and land in Toronto instead with its better domestic and US connections.

Ironically, the Trudeau government had recently developed Mirabel Airport north of Montreal to handle an expected growth in international traffic, and, eventually, to replace Dorval. That extra traffic never materialized, and due to its closer proximity to downtown Montreal, all scheduled air services have now returned to Dorval/Trudeau, while Mirabel has ceased passenger operations and can be considered a colossal failure. Today, activity at Mirabel is limited to cargo and test-flights.

Back to Montreal-Dorval, renaissance

With all international scheduled flights going back to Montreal-Dorval in 1997, as well as charter flights in 2004, Montreal-Dorval International Airport was finally able to become a true hub, where passengers wouldn't have to travel to different airports depending on the type of flight. The consolidation of flights to Montreal-Dorval resulted in an increase of passenger traffic, not only because of transfer of flights, but because of new connecting opportunities. In 2000, 9.4 million passengers used the airport at a time when the maximum capacity was 7 million. In 2006, the airport handled 11.4 million passengers, a new record.

Operation Yellow Ribbon

On September 11, 2001, Dorval participated in Operation Yellow Ribbon, taking in 10 diverted flights that had been bound for the closed airspace over the United States, even though pilots were asked to avoid the airport as a security measure.

Renaming

Montréal-Trudeau was formerly known as Montréal-Dorval International Airport. It is located in the city of Dorval. The airport was renamed by the federal government in honour of former Canadian Prime Minister, the late Right Honourable Pierre Elliott Trudeau, on January 1, 2004, the renaming having been announced in September the previous year by then Minister of Transport David Collenette. This move provoked opposition from some Québécois, especially Quebec sovereignists opposed to some of the policies of the former prime minister, as well as less vocal opposition from many aviation historians and enthusiasts who recalled Trudeau's role as an opponent of the airport. Trudeau was heavily involved in the construction of Mirabel International Airport, originally planned to replace Montréal-Dorval airport. Many Montrealers still refer to Trudeau airport as "Dorval," or "Dorval Airport."

Expansion

Terminal Expansion

Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport underwent a major expansion and modernization designed to increase the terminal's capacity and substantially enhance the level of passenger service.

In February of 2000, with a budget of CAD$716 million, ADM announced plans for an extensive expansion plan that would bring Montreal-Trudeau up to stardards with other North American airports its size. The airport terminal had for the most part remained the same, with the exception of minor renovations, since its opening in the 1960s. With increased passenger volume resulting from the transfer of international scheduled passengers from Mirabel Airport in 1997, as well as Air Canada's intentions to make Montreal-Dorval its Eastern Canada hub, there was a strong need to greatly expand the terminal, whose capacity of roughly 7 million passengers per year had been exceeded.

The expansion program included the construction of several brand-new facilities, including a jetty for flights to the United States (Transborder Terminal), another for overseas flights (International Terminal) and a huge international arrivals complex for passengers arriving in Canada from the U.S. and abroad. A 17-gate Transborder Concourse, an 11-gate International Concourse, new Customs Hall and Baggage claim area for non-domestic flights, and an expanded parking garage, were built between 2000 and 2005. Additionally, sections of the Domestic area were renovated and expanded, accompanied with additional retail space.

The completion of the CAD$716 million expansion gives Montreal-Trudeau the ability to serve 20 million passengers a year. This ironically accomplished one of the goals that was to be met with the construction of Mirabel. (In the 1970s, the federal government projected that 20 million passengers would be passing through Montreal's airports annually by 1985, with 17 million through Mirabel).

Aéroports de Montréal is financing all of these improvements itself, with no government grants.

Other Projects

Starting in 2006, ADM began the next process of land access to upgrade road traffic to the airport, a new parking garage, and the improvement of the domestic terminal.

On June 15, 2006 construction began on a new four-star Marriott hotel at the airport. It will be linked to the Transborder Terminal and should be completed by fall 2008. It will eventually contain an underground train station to connect it with downtown Montreal for quick access.

On November 30, 2006, ADM announced plans to relocate numerous hangars at the western part of the airport in order to expand the Transborder and International terminals. The Transborder terminal will be upgraded to 25 boarding gates, while the International terminal will be reconfigured to accommodate 17 wide-body jets at any given time. Construction is slated to begin in 2007. When all upgrades are complete the airport will be able to accommodate 26 million passengers annually.

Dorval interchange

Aéroports de Montréal, the City of Montreal and Transports Québec, together with the Government of Canada, are planning to improve the Dorval interchange and build direct road links between the airport and highways 20 and 520. Once the certificate of authorization has been obtained, work is scheduled to begin in 2007 and end in 2011. The project will entail redesigning the roads network within the airport site.

Rail shuttle between Montréal-Trudeau and Downtown Montreal

Aéroports de Montréal is planning to introduce an express rail shuttle service to accelerate access to the airport from the downtown core. This 20-km-long shuttle, with departures every 20 minutes, would make the trip in under 20 minutes, rain or shine. To this end, ADM, Via Rail and the Agence métropolitaine de transport have jointly developed a wide-ranging proposal that includes the enhancement of commuter train and inter-city train service between Central Station and the West Island of Montreal.

Airbus A380

The last round of construction improved Montréal-Trudeau so that it is one of the few airports in the world that is prepared to handle the new Airbus A380. Air France will be the first operator of the type in Montreal and will use gate 55, which is equipped with two air bridges to load and unload passengers on both decks of the A-380 simultaneously.

Possible Metro Expansion

In 2007, during an interview with television crews on the opening of three new Montreal Metro stations in Laval, Quebec, Premier Jean Charest was asked if there were any plans to expand the metro west, preferably into the West Island. Charest responded that he was keen on the idea of it being expanded to at least Dorval, to serve Montreal-Trudeau and help better connect Montreal's West Island community with downtown and the rest of the island. He claims the west is one of their main expansion priorities.

Terminals and destinations

Some 40 airlines offer services to 120 regular and seasonal destinations worldwide.

International terminal

• Air Algérie (Algiers) [Starts June 15, 2007]
• Air Canada (Bridgetown, Cancun, Cayo Coco, Cayo Largo, Frankfurt, Holguin, London-Heathrow, Mexico City, Montego Bay, Nassau, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Pointe-à-Pitre, Port-au-Prince, Puerto Plata, Punta Cana, Rome-Fiumicino, Varadero)
• Air France (Paris-Charles de Gaulle)
• Air Saint-Pierre (Saint-Pierre)
• Air Transat (Acapulco, Athens, Barcelona, Bordeaux, Brussels, Camaguey, Cancun, Cayo Coco, Cayo Largo, Fort-de-France, Holguin, Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo, La Romana, Lisbon, London-Gatwick, Lyon, Madrid, Malaga, Managua, Marseille, Montego Bay, Nantes, Nice, Panama City, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Porlamar, Port-au-Prince, Porto, Puerto Plata, Puerto Vallarta, Punta Cana, Rome-Fiumicino, Samana, San Jose, Santa Clara/Cayo Santa Maria, San Andres Islands, San Salvador, St. Maarten, Toulouse, Varadero, Vienna)
• British Airways (London-Heathrow)
• CanJet (Cayo Largo, Montego Bay, Santa Clara/Cayo Santa Maria, Varadero)
• Corsairfly (Paris-Orly [seasonal])
• Czech Airlines (Prague)
• Cubana de Aviación (Camaguey, Cayo Coco, Cayo Largo, Cienfuegos, Havana, Holguin, Manzanillo de Cuba, Santiago de Cuba, Varadero)
• EgyptAir (Cairo [seasonal])
• El Al (Tel Aviv) [Charter flights only]
• JetX Airlines (Reykjavik) [seasonal]
• KLM (Amsterdam)
• Lufthansa (Munich [seasonal])
• Mexicana (Mexico City)
• Olympic Airlines (Athens)
• Royal Air Maroc (Casablanca)
• Royal Jordanian (Amman)
• Sata International (Lisbon, Ponta Delgada [All seasonal])
• Skyservice (Bahias de Huatulco, Cancun, Cayo Coco, Cayo Largo, Holguin, La Romana, Montego Bay, Puerto Plata, Puerto Vallarta, Punta Cana, Samana, Santa Clara/Cayo Santa Maria, Varadero, Venice)
• Sunwing Airlines (Acapulco, Camaguey, Cancun, Cayo Coco, Cienfuegos, Holguin, Puerto Plata, Punta Cana, Panama City, Santiago de Cuba, Varadero)
• Swiss International Air Lines (Zürich)
• Thomas Cook Airlines (London-Gatwick, Manchester (UK)) [seasonal]
• Transaero (Moscow-Domodedovo)
• WestJet (La Ceiba, La Romana, Manzanillo, Providenciales, Puerto Vallarta, San Salvador (El Salvador), San Salvador (Bahamas), Santa Clara/Cayo Santa Maria, Santo Domingo)
• Zoom Airlines (Acapulco, Camaguey, Cancun, La Romana, London-Gatwick, London-Stansted, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Porlamar, Punta Cana, Puerto Plata, St. Maarten, Varadero)

Transborder terminal (US)

• Air Canada (Boston, Chicago-O'Hare, Denver, Fort Lauderdale, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York-LaGuardia, Orlando, San Francisco, San Juan, Tampa, Washington-Reagan)
  • Air Canada Jazz (Boston, Chicago-O'Hare, Newark, Washington-Dulles, Washington-Reagan)
  • Air Canada Jazz operated by Air Georgian (Hartford)
• Air Transat (Fort Lauderdale, Orlando)
• American Airlines (Chicago-O'Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami)
  • American Eagle (Chicago-O'Hare, New York-JFK)
• CanJet (Fort Lauderdale, Orlando)

• Continental Airlines
  • Continental Express operated by ExpressJet Airlines (Cleveland, Newark)
• Delta Air Lines (Atlanta)
  • Delta Connection operated by Atlantic Southeast Airlines (Atlanta)
  • Delta Connection operated by Comair (Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, New York-JFK, New York-LaGuardia)
• Miami Air (Miami)
• Northwest Airlines (Detroit)
  • Northwest Airlink operated by Pinnacle Airlines (Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul)
• Sunwing Airlines (Fort Lauderdale, Orlando)
• United Airlines
  • United Express operated by Shuttle America (Chicago-O'Hare, Washington-Dulles)
• US Airways (Philadelphia)
  • US Airways Express operated by Air Wisconsin (Philadelphia)
• WestJet (Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Tampa) [all seasonal]

Domestic terminal

• Air Canada (Calgary, Deer Lake, Edmonton, Halifax, Ottawa, St. John's (NL), Toronto-Pearson, Vancouver)
  • Air Canada Jazz (Bagotville, Baie-Comeau, Bathurst, Charlottetown, Fredericton, Halifax, Hamilton, Magdalen Islands, Moncton, Mont-Joli, Ottawa, Quebec City, Rouyn-Noranda, Saint John (NB), Sydney (NS), Toronto-Pearson, Val-d'Or, Wabush, Winnipeg)
• Air Creebec (Chibougamau, Nemiscau, Roberval, Val-d'Or)
• Air Georgian (Moncton)
• Air Inuit (Kuujjuarapik, Puvirnituq, Quebec City, La Grande, Salluit)
• Air Labrador (Goose Bay, Quebec City, Sept-Îles, St. John's, Wabush)
• First Air (Iqaluit, Kuujjuaq)
• Porter Airlines (Halifax [seasonal, begins June 29, 2007], Toronto-City Centre)
• Provincial Airlines (Sept-Îles, Wabush)
• Sunwing Airlines (Toronto-Pearson, Vancouver)^[5]
• WestJet (Calgary, Charlottetown [seasonal], Edmonton [seasonal], Halifax^[6], Toronto-Pearson, Winnipeg, Vancouver)

Future destinations

Aéroports de Montréal is currently examining new potential destinations to serve Montreal-Trudeau, which include: Geneva, Switzerland; Santiago, Chile; Tel Aviv, Israel; and Tokyo, Japan. There are also talks about improving the connection between the U.S. South and West.

Lounges

Air Canada has three Maple Leaf Lounges at Montreal-Trudeau International Airport: 1 in the Domestic Jetty, 1 in the Transborder Jetty, and 1 in the International Jetty. Air France has a lounge in the international jetty, on the higher level, at gate B55, their A380 gate.

Cargo

• Air Georgian (Toronto-Pearson)
• Nolinor Aviation
• Volga-Dnepr Airlines (Bombardier operations)

Former airlines

In the past, this airport was also served by:

Incidents

• November 29, 1963: Trans-Canada Air Lines Flight 831 crashed shortly after departure for Toronto, killing all 118 people on board the Douglas DC-8 jet.
• June 2, 1982: a Douglas DC-9 jet exploded during a maintenance period in Montreal, Quebec. No deaths.
• July 23, 1983: Air Canada Flight 143, a Boeing 767 flight originating in Dorval, made an emergency landing in Gimli, Manitoba after running out of fuel. No one was injured, and the incident became known as the Gimli Glider.
• October 25 1999: A small leak of radioactve led to an evacuation of about 20 people from a cargo building near Dorval airport. No flights were delayed and several people had to be examined for any exposure from the radiation. There were no injuries.[1]
• February 12, 2000: A fire in the Dorval airport office one floor above the departure level, forced the evacuation and disruption of operations for five hours, over 100 flights had to be cancelled or diverted. The incident resulted in a four-hour traffic jam around the airport. There were no injuries.[2]

Controversy

The airport has started covering and preventing usage of public electrical outlets to prevent people from charging / using their laptops and other mobile devices. Ironically the airport offers several pay WiFi hotspots.^[7]

See also

• List of airports in the Montreal area
• Dorval (AMT)

References

External links

• Aéroports de Montréal Homepage
• Current CYUL Aviation Weather