page_title: Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport
section_title: Overview
hierarchical_section_title: Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport / Overview
caption_attribution_description: English: Canadians know keeping their house warm isn’t a luxury. We believe they shouldn’t have to pay GST on home heating and energy bills. Looking forward to talking about my newest policy and take lots of questions at tonight’s townhall in Kitchener. See you soon Kitchener! Français&#160;: Les Canadiens savent que garder leur maison au chaud n’est pas un luxe. Nous croyons qu’ils ne devraient pas avoir à payer la TPS sur leurs factures de chauffage résidentiel et d’énergie. Je suis impatient de parler de ma nouvelle politique et de répondre à de nombreuses questions à la rencontre publique de ce soir à Kitchener. À bientôt Kitchener!
context_page_description: Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport, also known as Jean Lesage International Airport is the primary airport serving the Canadian city of Québec. Located 6 nautical miles west southwest of the city, it is the eleventh-busiest airport in Canada, with 1,670,880 passengers and 121,680 aircraft movements in 2017. More than 10 airlines offer 360 weekly flights to destinations across Canada, the United States, Central America, Mexico, the Caribbean and Europe.
context_section_description: The airport was established in 1939, a year after the closure of the Aérodrome Saint-Louis. First established as a training facility for air observers, the first flight occurred on September 11, 1941. First known as the Aéroport de l'Ancienne Lorette, then the Aéroport de Sainte-Foy, and later the Aéroport de Québec, it was renamed to Aéroport international Jean-Lesage in 1993, in honour of the former Premier of Quebec, Jean Lesage. The airport is managed and operated by Aéroport de Québec inc., a non-profit and non-share corporation. The current terminal building has a capacity of 1.4 million passengers annually.
  Beginning in 2006, with a budget of $65.8 million, Québec/Jean Lesage International Airport underwent a modernization designed to increase the terminal's capacity and substantially enhance the level of passenger service. The modernization included a reconfiguration of the terminal on 2 levels, a restructuring of the baggage handling area and arrivals area, as well as a reconfiguration and enlargement of the waiting rooms. Fifty-four percent of the financing was provided directly by Aéroport de Québec inc. Completed in June 2008, the new configuration of the airport now enables it to handle 1.4 million passengers a year.
  Based on the passenger figures for 2009 and 2010, it became clear that the terminal building would reach its design capacity by 2012. Aéroport de Québec inc. is therefore planning further investments of nearly $300 million to further expand the terminal building. Presently the terminal has 17 gates: 12 contact gates and 5 walk-out aircraft positions. This number will increase to 24 gates by 2025.
  On July 4, 2011, work began on the second phase of the airport expansion, which lasted until 2017. Partially funded through an Airport Improvement Fee, the terminal building doubled the size, at a cost of $224.8 million. The work included an expansion of the international facilities, construction work on the runways, taxiways and de-icing pads, as well as enhancements to customer service facilities. On September 19, 2013, runway 12/30 was renamed to runway 11/29.
  The airport charges an Airport Improvement Fee (AIF) to each passenger, it is amongst the highest in Canada at $35 per passenger.
  In 2015 the airport was the 12th-busiest airport by total passengers and in 2014 it was the 14th-busiest by aircraft movements in Canada. On 10 March 2016, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the addition of the airport to the list of Canadian airports containing U.S. border preclearance facilities.
  On December 11, 2017, the first phase of YQB2018, the expansion project, was completed with the opening of the new international terminal. The new facility features more dedicated baggage carousels serving international flights, new customs area, expanded food court and restaurant areas including banners such as Starbucks, Pidz and Nourc, four new gates (34 to 37), improved and larger loading area for cars and buses and a larger capacity baggage area.
  The last expansion phase was completed in summer of 2019 with the domestic and international terminals being linked all together.
  Also added as part of the most recent expansion are 10 holes in the security fence placed at positions determined jointly by the airport authority and a local plane spotting group. These holes are sized to allow photographers to insert telephoto lenses, and are specifically reserved for their use. In 2019, the American website Digital Photography Review called the airport "the number one spot for aviation photographers".
caption: Inside the airport terminal
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