Yellowknife International Airport (CYZF), Northwest Territories
Landing essentials
Whether you can land, whether you can refuel, and how customs works here.
Overview
CYZF, Yellowknife International Airport, serves as the principal aviation gateway for the Northwest Territories, sitting near Great Slave Lake with two paved runways capable of handling business and cargo traffic year round. As a Canadian border-crossing point, traffic figures for Yellowknife International Airport reflect cross-border movements tracked by the FAA rather than the airport's total activity.
Runways
Yellowknife International Airport has two paved runways. The longest, 16/34, is 7,500 ft long and 150 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
Yellowknife International Airport does not clear customs. The nearest port of entry is CEN9, 3 NM away.
Source: CBSA list of airports of entry.
Business aviation traffic
Yellowknife International Airport recorded 5,879 business aviation movements in 2025. Traffic peaks in October. Cross-border business aviation traffic at CYZF is heaviest in October and lightest in June, with the two months differing by roughly seventy-six operations.
Cross-border movements to the United States, FAA TFMSC count. Peak month October, 606 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
Yellowknife International Airport averages 0.1 days above 90°F in July, 31.0 freeze days in January and 2.3 snow days in November. July is the warmest month, with average highs of 70.7°F, and January the coldest, at -6.9°F.
Weather station is on the field. 1991–2020 climate normals.
Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada.
Alternates
Yellowknife International Airport has five alternates within 196 NM. The nearest alternate is Lutselk'e Airport (CYLK), 104.39 NM east.
Part of the Canadian North area.
Source: Skystar calculation from official coordinates.
Skystar at CYZF
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 CYZF.
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 runways are available at CYZF?
Yellowknife International Airport operates two paved asphalt runways. Runway 16/34 is the longer of the two, measuring 7,500 feet by 150 feet. Runway 10/28 measures 5,000 feet by 150 feet, also asphalt. Both runways share the same 150-foot width, giving dispatchers consistent options for aircraft with wider wheelbases. The longer runway accommodates the largest business aircraft operating into CYZF.
How does customs clearance work at Yellowknife International Airport?
Yellowknife International Airport does not have customs service confirmed onsite in available records. The nearest customs facility is CEN9, located approximately 2.51 nautical miles away. Crews planning international arrivals at CYZF should confirm current customs arrangements before filing, since onsite clearance is not established in this data. Coordinating with the nearest customs point in advance helps avoid delays on arrival at this Northwest Territories gateway.
What is the elevation at CYZF?
Yellowknife International Airport sits at 675 feet above sea level. This elevation is a routine planning factor for performance calculations at CYZF, particularly given the airport's cold-weather operating environment. Combined with runway lengths of 7,500 feet and 5,000 feet, the field elevation factors into takeoff and landing distance planning for business aircraft. Crews should account for it alongside seasonal temperature extremes recorded at this Northwest Territories airport.
How cold does it get at Yellowknife International Airport, and how does this affect operations?
Yellowknife International Airport experiences sustained subzero conditions for much of the year. January averages a maximum temperature of about minus 6.9 degrees Fahrenheit, with 31 days below freezing that month alone. Similar freezing-day counts persist from November through March. Snow accumulation of one inch or more occurs most frequently in November, at roughly 2.3 days on average. Crews operating into CYZF should plan for cold-weather procedures across most of the year given these conditions.
What does business aviation traffic look like at CYZF throughout the year?
Business aviation traffic at Yellowknife International Airport, as tracked by the FAA for cross-border movements, peaks in October at 606 operations. The lowest month is June, with 345 operations. Traffic generally stays above 400 operations monthly except for a dip through the late spring and early summer period. Annual cross-border business aviation operations at CYZF total 5,879, out of 29,102 total tracked operations for 2025. Dispatchers should note the October peak when planning for slot or ramp availability.