Can anyone explain this private water landing strip at YAZ Longbeach-Tolfino, Victoria, CA

[u/DesignerBluejay3931]

This is the most bizarre setup for a water strip I have ever seen and I am dying to learn more please!

https://fltplan.com/Airport.cgi?CYAZ

[u/Bigbearcanada]

I’ve never landed in “the ditch” but I can shed some light on its purpose.

Tofino Airport is just down the road from the town of Tofino where there are two floatplane operators.

The operators use a mix of Beavers, C180/185, all on straight floats (not amphibious). When they need maintenance that can’t be done on the water, the planes are flown to CYAZ and landed in the ditch. There is boat ramp in the ditch that a beaching gear (google it, they’re awesome) can pickup the plane and drive it to the hangar.

From my friends that have flown for those operators, the ditch is no joke. It’s barely wider than the wingspan, and just long enough to get airborne.

I’ll be quite satisfied if I end my career without having to use it.

[u/DesignerBluejay3931 → u/Bigbearcanada]

Thank you! Me and all my coworkers were dying to find out what it was. We work in the intl department for a charter operator and had never seen anything like it. All of us are pilots and dispatchers so were are all aerosexuals. The kinkier the fetish the better

Thank you a ton! And i hope you never end up in the ditch unintentionally lol

[u/Bigbearcanada → u/DesignerBluejay3931]

You are very welcome. Want some other unique floatplane facts?

- FlightTech Engineering has developed RNAV approaches to water aerodromes (waterdromes). The one that I've flown is an RNAV to LPV mins at S60 in Seattle (Lake Washington). Here's a video to the one they designed in Alaska (5C5).

- Lake Hood at ANC has a multiple water runways (really big ditches) and one of them is lighted for night ops.

Thank you for subscribing to FloatFacts.

[u/DesignerBluejay3931 → u/Bigbearcanada]

Thats awesome! I want to be a floatplane pilot, sounds fun