Route One: Flying from Eeastern/Central US

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Route One: Flying from Eeastern/Central US

There is no significant terrain all the way across Canada from the eastern/central US until the Rocky Mountains begin west of Fort St. John, at the eastern edge of British Columbia. The highest elevation between the east coast and Edmonton is 3,500 feet. Most of that distance is farmland, although beyond Edmonton the terrain becomes very sparsely populated (virtually no roads or civilization anywhere in sight).

Because of the lack of any significant terrain, regardless of whether flying IFR or VFR, the recommended route for flying across Canada from the eastern/central US all the way to Fort Nelson, British Columbia, is to simply file GPS direct from one major city to the next, as follows: Duluth (KDLH) to Winnipeg (CYWG); Winnipeg to Regina (CYQR); Regina to Edmonton City Centre (CYXD); and Edmonton over either Peace River VOR (YPE) or Fort St. John VOR (YXJ) and then to Fort Nelson (CYYE).

If flying IFR to western Canada, use the following Canadian enroute charts: LO 4, LO 2 and LO 1 (1.5MB each, so expect slow download). If flying VFR, use the following Canadian sectional charts: Winnipeg, Regina and Edmonton.

Note: instead of flying to Winnipeg to check in with Canadian customs, one can fly an alternate route to Piney Pinecreek Border airport (48Y), which has a 3,300 foot hard surface runway that straddles the Minnesota/Manitoba border and is almost certain to have no traffic; and from there fly to Regina (CYQR) or directly to Edmonton. Further note: don’t fly into Edmonton International (CYEG) unless you need to check in with Canadian customs: its a big, busy airport that is quite a distance from the city. Edmonton City Centre (CYXD), on the other hand, is a big, busy airport that is located right near downtown.

Mountainous terrain starts after Fort Nelson, British Columbia (CYYE), so the recommended IFR route is along the published airways: fly A2 to Liard River NDB (ZL), then A2 to Watson Lake VOR (YQH) and, again, A2 to Whitehorse(CYXY). This route is 395 nm and the highest MEA is 9,000 feet.

If flying IFR between Fort Nelson (CYYE) and Whitehorse (CYXY), use the following Canadian enroute charts: LO 1 and LO 5 (1.5MB each, so expect slow download). If flying VFR, use the following Canadian sectional charts: Edmonton, Prince George, Fort Nelson and Whitehorse.

Significant mountainous terrain exists after Whitehorse (CYXY), so the recommended IFR route is along the published airways: fly BR44 to Burwash NDB (DB), then BR44 to the Northway, Alaska VOR (ORT), then G8 airway to BEFTI intersection and Gulkana VOR (GKN), then V456 to Big Lake VOR (BGQ) and Anchorage VOR (ANC). This route is 522 nm and the highest MEA is 10,000 feet.

If flying IFR between Whitehorse (CYXY) and Anchorage (PANC), use the Canadian LO 5 (1.5MB) and NOAA L-1 enroute charts. If flying VFR, use the following NOAA sectional charts: Whitehorse and Anchorage.

If VFR conditions exist, consider flying along fabled Alaska Highway from Fort St. John (CYXJ) to Whitehorse (CYXY) (described below as Route Four) and then into Alaska all the way to Anchorage (PANC) (described below as Route Five). Watch out for low and slow Cessna and Piper traffic.

All of the primary Canadian airport locations noted on this suggested routing has a suitable paved runway, along with fuel and food services. If the weather allows, VFR is the preferable way to fly across Canada because it can be flown GPS direct, whereas IFR should only be flown if the weather is poor because it offers none of the services typically associated with the radar environment in the continental US due to the absence of any radar coverage in most of Canada and Alaska (except the major cities).

Listed below are directory information, diagrams and instrument approach procedures for each of the airports mentioned in Route One (or, in the case of a navigation aid, the associated airport). This information was obtained from either AOPA or NavCanada, is copyrighted, has an expiration date of mid-2004, and is presented for informational purposes only.

Anchorage (PANC)

Burwash (CYDB)

Regina (CYQR)

Whitehorse (CYXY)

Winnipeg (CYWG)