Fort Nelson Airport (CYYE), British Columbia
Landing essentials
Whether you can land, whether you can refuel, and how customs works here.
Overview
Fort Nelson Airport (CYYE) serves the northern British Columbia community of Fort Nelson from an elevation of 1,253 feet. The field offers two paved runways, including a 6,400-foot primary strip capable of handling a range of business aviation traffic, though customs clearance is not available onsite and must be arranged through CYXS, roughly 297 nautical miles distant. Traffic through CYYE is tracked by the FAA as cross-border activity rather than a measure of total field operations.
Runways
Fort Nelson Airport has two paved runways. The longest, 04/22, is 6,400 ft long and 200 ft wide, with an asphalt surface.
Runway geometry from published threshold coordinates. Not for navigation.
Runways are listed longest first.
Source: FAA Form 5010.
Customs
Fort Nelson Airport does not clear customs. The nearest port of entry is Prince George (international) Airport (CYXS), 297 NM away.
Source: CBSA list of airports of entry.
Business aviation traffic
Fort Nelson Airport recorded 525 business aviation movements in 2025. Traffic peaks in August. Business aviation traffic at CYYE concentrates in the summer and early fall months, with operations in August and September running well above the levels seen from October through February.
Cross-border movements to the United States, FAA TFMSC count. Peak month August, 75 movements in 2025.
FAA TFMSC records a movement outside the United States only when the flight enters US airspace. This is cross-border traffic, not total activity at the airfield.
Source: FAA TFMSC, cross-border movements, 2025.
Climate
Fort Nelson Airport averages 1.5 days above 90°F in July, 31.0 freeze days in January and 2.7 snow days in November. July is the warmest month, with average highs of 73.9°F, and January the coldest, at 3.0°F.
Weather station is on the field. 1991–2020 climate normals.
Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada.
Alternates
Fort Nelson Airport has five alternates within 181 NM. The nearest alternate is Rainbow Lake Airport (CYOP), 101.70 NM east.
Source: Skystar calculation from official coordinates.
Skystar at CYYE
We arrange catering, fuel and trip support here. Supplier prices reach you unchanged; our coordination fee sits on its own line.
The same order, priced two ways.
$2,400.00 catering order at CYYE.
Unchanged.
What the kitchen invoices us is what your quote reads.
One line, fixed.
It does not move with the size of the order.
At cost.
Passed on at the exact amount the processor took.
Market practice figures are industry averages, not a specific competitor.
Frequently asked questions
What is the runway configuration at CYYE?
Fort Nelson Airport, identifier CYYE, operates two paved asphalt runways. The primary runway, 04/22, measures 6,400 feet long and 200 feet wide, making it the longest surface at the field. The secondary runway, 08/26, is shorter and narrower at 3,575 feet long and 77 feet wide. Both runways are asphalt, giving operators a paved option regardless of wind direction. The 6,400-foot length on 04/22 accommodates a wide range of business aviation aircraft types.
Does Fort Nelson Airport have customs clearance onsite?
Fort Nelson Airport does not have customs processing onsite. The nearest customs-equipped airport is CYXS, located approximately 297 nautical miles away. Operators planning a cross-border arrival at CYYE need to route their customs clearance through that facility instead. This distance is significant enough that flight planning should account for it separately from the Fort Nelson leg itself. Crews should confirm current customs procedures and any permit requirements with CYXS directly before routing traffic through Fort Nelson.
How busy is Fort Nelson Airport, and when does traffic peak?
Fort Nelson Airport, CYYE, recorded 1,045 annual operations in 2025 according to FAA TFMSC data tracking cross-border traffic, with 525 of those classified as business aviation. Monthly bizav operations ranged from a low of 19 in November to a high of 75 in August. Traffic builds through the summer months, with June, August, and September all posting counts above 60. The airport carries an ops tier of 1, reflecting its position among the more heavily trafficked airports Skystar tracks in this dataset. Operators should expect the busiest window to fall in the summer and early fall period.
What are winter operating conditions like at Fort Nelson Airport?
Fort Nelson Airport experiences sustained cold through much of the year, with January and December average high temperatures near 3.0 and 6.1 degrees Fahrenheit respectively. Days below freezing occur on nearly every day of January, February, March, November, and December, based on the source climate data. Snow accumulation of an inch or more is recorded across every winter month, with November averaging 2.7 such days. Warmer conditions arrive by June through August, when highs climb into the 70s Fahrenheit. Crews operating into CYYE in winter should plan for cold-weather procedures across a large portion of the calendar.
How far is Fort Nelson Airport from other regional airports?
Fort Nelson Airport, CYYE, sits within a cluster of small regional airports across northern British Columbia and Alberta. Rainbow Lake Airport is the closest neighbor at 101.70 nautical miles, on a bearing of 100 degrees. Fort St John / North Peace Regional Airport lies 167.07 nautical miles away, and Hudson's Hope Airport is 169.37 nautical miles out. High Level Airport and Fort Simpson Airport round out the nearby field list at 169.74 and 180.14 nautical miles respectively. These distances reflect the sparse airport network typical of this part of northern Canada.