Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport
Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport | |||||||||||||||||||
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Aerial view of the airport in 2022 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Summary | |||||||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||||||||||
| Owner | Transport Canada | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operator | Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport Authority | ||||||||||||||||||
| Serves | Ottawa–Gatineau | ||||||||||||||||||
| Hub for | Porter Airlines | ||||||||||||||||||
| Focus city for | |||||||||||||||||||
| Time zone | EST (UTC−05:00) | ||||||||||||||||||
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC−04:00) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 377 ft / 115 m | ||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 45°19′21″N 075°40′02″W / 45.32250°N 75.66722°W | ||||||||||||||||||
| Public transit access | Airport station | ||||||||||||||||||
| Website | www | ||||||||||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||||||||||
CYOW Location in Ottawa CYOW CYOW (Ontario) CYOW CYOW (Canada) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Statistics (2025) | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Sources: Canada Flight Supplement Environment Canada Movements from Statistics Canada Passenger statistics from Ottawa Airport | |||||||||||||||||||
Ottawa/Macdonald–Cartier International Airport (IATA: YOW, ICAO: CYOW) or simply Ottawa International Airport is the main international airport serving the National Capital Region of Canada which contains the cities of Ottawa, Ontario and Gatineau, Quebec. Located 8 nautical miles (15 km; 9.2 mi) south of downtown Ottawa in the south end of the city, it is Canada's sixth-busiest airport, Ontario's second-busiest airport by airline passenger traffic, with 4,866,236 passengers in 2025. The airport is a major hub for Porter Airlines, a focus city for Air Canada and Air Transat and a home base for Canadian North (formerly First Air). The airport is named after the Canadian statesmen and two of the "founding fathers of Canada", Sir John A. Macdonald and Sir George-Étienne Cartier.
It is classified as an airport of entry by Nav Canada, and is staffed by the Canada Border Services Agency, it is one of nine Canadian airports that contain U.S border preclearance facilities. The airport was formerly a military base known as CFB Ottawa South/CFB Uplands, and is still home to the Royal Canadian Air Force's (RCAF) 412 Transport Squadron, which provides air transport for Canadian and foreign government officials.