King Cove Airport (PAVC), Alaska
Landing essentials
Whether you can land, whether you can refuel, and how customs works here.
Overview
King Cove Airport (PAVC) is an unattended public-use gravel-strip airport on the Alaska Peninsula. Business aviation traffic is light and seasonal, with customs clearance available only through Unalaska (PADU), roughly 166 nautical miles away.
Runways
King Cove Airport has one unpaved runway, 08/26, 3,500 ft long and 115 ft wide, with a gravel surface.
Runway geometry from published threshold coordinates. Not for navigation.
Source: FAA Form 5010.
Fuel and airfield services
The airport has no control tower.
Source: FAA Form 5010 / NASR.
Customs
King Cove Airport does not clear customs. The nearest port of entry is Unalaska (PADU), 166 NM away.
Source: CBP list of ports of entry.
Business aviation traffic
King Cove Airport recorded 225 business aviation movements in 2025. Traffic peaks in March. Business aviation traffic at King Cove Airport is heavier in the winter and spring months, particularly January through March, and drops to its lowest point in September.
Business jet movements, FAA TFMSC count. Peak month March, 30 movements in 2025.
Source: FAA TFMSC, business jet movements, 2025.
Climate
King Cove Airport averages 24.8 freeze days in March and 4.9 snow days in December. August is the warmest month, with average highs of 57.2°F, and January the coldest, at 33.2°F.
Weather station is 17.2 NM from the field. Some values are estimated by the agency. 1991–2020 climate normals.
Source: NOAA NCEI.
Operating constraints
King Cove Airport has published operating constraints in two categories: runway notes and other notes.
Winds of 16 knots or more occur in the NE, E, and NW quadrants. Wind funnels down the canyon west of runway 08.
Runway edge identifier lights (REIL) are active on runway 08 and 26, along with PAPI on both ends and medium intensity runway lights (MIRL) on runway 08/26, controlled via CTAF.
The runway is soft during spring breakup and after heavy rain.
Runway condition is not monitored. A visual inspection is recommended prior to use.
The PAPI is unusable beyond 5 degrees left and right of centerline.
A weather camera is available online at https://weathercams.faa.gov.
This is a cold temperature airport. Altitude correction is required at or below -8°C.
Source: FAA Chart Supplement.
Nearby airfields
King Cove Airport has two airfields within 43 NM. The closest is Cold Bay (PACD), 16.66 NM west.
Source: Skystar calculation from official coordinates.
Skystar at PAVC
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.
$600.00 catering order at PAVC.
Unchanged.
What the kitchen invoices us is what your quote reads.
One line, fixed.
The $75 minimum applies below $862.50.
At cost.
Passed on at the exact amount the processor took.
Market practice figures are industry averages, not a specific competitor.
Frequently asked questions
Is fuel available at PAVC (King Cove Airport)?
No fuel data is published for King Cove Airport (PAVC) in current sources. Dispatchers should plan for fuel at an alternate such as Cold Bay, roughly 17 nautical miles away, before routing aircraft into PAVC.
What is the runway surface at King Cove Airport?
King Cove Airport (PAVC) has a single gravel runway, 08/26, measuring 3,500 feet long and 115 feet wide. Runway condition is not monitored, so a visual inspection is recommended before use, particularly since the surface can soften during spring breakup or after heavy rain.
Are there any approach or wind hazards to plan for at KVC?
KVC (King Cove Airport) reports winds of 16 knots or more from the NE, E, and NW quadrants, with wind funneling down the canyon west of runway 08. The PAPI on both runway ends is also unusable beyond 5 degrees left or right of centerline, which limits visual glidepath guidance off-axis.