Tofino Airport

On the night of June 20^th, 1942 the Japanese submarine I26 came to the surface off Estevan Point, 110 km northwest of Tofino, and briefly shelled the lighthouse and signal station.  Thanks to the keeper�s quick action in extinguishing the light, there was no damage or injury. 

This, and other similar attacks, validated the decision taken earlier in the war to build up Canada�s coastal defences.  Tofino was identified as a site for a land-based airport from which the RCAF could conduct coastal defence activities.  Construction began in early 1942 on a site acquired from a Mr. Lovekin, a sugar millionaire who lived in Hawaii but had property on Wickaninnish Bay. 

The first operational plane to arrive on July 4, 1942, an armed Lysander, ran off the end of the unmarked and unfinished runway.  By October 8, 1942 two of the three planned 5,000 foot runways had been coompleted, along with half of the planned accommodation buildings�an extraordinary achievement, given the heavily wooded state of the site and the logistical challenges involved in moving construction materials.

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By the end of October 1942 several No. 132 (Fighter) Squadron aircraft had arrived at the base and begun routine patrols.  Not all of its missions ended successfully�this 132 Sqn Harvard had to be recovered after a belly landing.

 

A detachment of four Bristol Bolingbroke aircraft from Sea Island based No. 147 Bomber Reconnaissance Squadron joined No. 132 Squadron in November.

 

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On March 3, 1943 No. 132 Sqn exchanged bases with No. 133 Sqn from Boundary Bay.  133�s P40 Kittyhawks were replaced at the end of that same month, leaving the Squadron with a complement of sixteen Hawker Hurricane Mk XII fighters and two Harvards.  The station again dramatically increased its capabilities four days later with the assignment of No. 147 (BR) Sqn to Tofino, adding its full complement of sixteen Bolingbrokes and support staff to the station inventory. 

 

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Tofino also hosted a large number of visiting aircraft.  In May, 1943 two RAF No. 32 Operational Training Unit (OTU) Hampdens were visitors to the station.  Unfortunately, one crashed on takeoff, luckily with no fatalities.

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As a fully fledged, fully staffed station, RCAF Station Tofino remained very busy for the next two years. However, by 1944 it was clear the tide of war was turning and the RCAF began cutting back its coastal operations.  On February 29, 1944, No. 147 Squadron flew its last mission and was disbanded at Tofino as of March 15. 

No. 115 (BR) Squadron transferred to Tofino on March 17 from Pat Bay with the squadron�s 15 Lockheed-Vega Ventura aircraft.  This squadron was subsequently disbanded at Tofino on August 23, 1944. 

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That month also saw the closing of RCAF Ucluelet in August, and the relocation of No. 4 (BR) Squadron�s Canso aircraft to Tofino, until that Squadron was also disbanded on August 7, 1945. 

Following the war, the base was decommissioned but remained RCAF property.  It was reopened briefly as a radar station in the Pinetree Line in 1955, then finally closed in 1958.  Responsibility for Tofino Airport then passed to the Department of Transport. 

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The legacy of the RCAF includes a well-known wreck, of a No. 6 Sqn Canso that had been visiting Tofino from its home base at Coal Harbour.  On takeoff, it experienced engine problems and came down in the bush off the end of runway 28.  The crew and passengers were rescued the next morning but the remains of the aircraft continue to attract visitors along a well-worn trail off the Pacific Rim Highway.

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The Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District is now the owner/operator of CYAZ, Tofino Airport.  As of 2021, the ACRD was developing a land-use plan to fund needed infrastructure upgrades.  Airside facilities currently consist of three hard surfaced runways, each 5000 feet in length; fuel and transient services; runway lighting for night operations; and a small terminal building that was completed in 2010.  Pacific Coastal flies a regular scheduled service to Tofino from its Vancouver base.  Atleo River Air Service offers charters from its local base in Tofino.  (January 2023)

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