History
In 1927, Charles Lindbergh refused to include Vancouver in his North American tour because of the lack of a proper airport. Two years later, the city purchased land on Sea Island for aviation purposes, replacing the original grass airstrip at Minoru Park. During World War II the airports and its original terminal, now the South Terminal, would be leased to the Federal government, and operated by the Department of National Defence and the Department of Transport. The airport was a base for Royal Canadian Air Force training, the crews and their families housed in a new townsite on the island, named Burkeville after Boeing president Stanley Burke. Funds from the lease were used to purchase additional land for new hangars and a production plant for Boeing Aircraft of Canada.
The present main terminal was completed in 1968, and has since been expanded to include separate domestic and international terminals. A north runway was completed in 1996.
In 2011 the airport announced that it will enact a program aiming to encourage airlines to start more flights between Vancouver and Asia.
Read more about this topic: Vancouver International Airport
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