Mirabel Airport opened in 1975, just in time for the 1976 Montreal Olympics. At the time it was the largest airport in the world, and meant to solve the problems of Montreal’s (supposed) overcrowded Dorval Airport (now Pierre Elliot Trudeau Airport). While Mirabel Airport was sited a fair distance (34 miles) outside of downtown Montreal, the master plan was to construct high speed rail and a highway to provide easy access for travelers. It sounded good. However, the rail was never constructed and the highway ended before the airport. Mirabel became too inconvenient for travelers and airlines, all of whom preferred Dorval Airport. Passenger numbers never reached the predictions of 20 million, and slowly declined, with passenger service ending in 2004. Since then, the terminal has sat empty, used only for the filming of a few films (The Terminal; Warm Bodies, for example). The former passenger airline runway is used for racing tracks (a brilliant adaptive reuse of all that pavement!) The airport serves only cargo planes.
However, an abandoned airport is particularly on the creepy side, when you consider that it’s a modern relic. The approach to the airport includes an empty parking garage on one side and the abandoned hotel on the other side. The Chateau Aeroport-Mirabel closed in 2002 due to lack of business. The hotel has sat empty since then. For a while there was talk of rehabilitating the terminal into a conference center, but plans never materialized. As of May 2014, the demolition of the airport terminal was announced, citing that rehabilitation / adaptive reuse could cost tens of millions of dollars.
Drag racing on the runways. You can see signs of the airport taxi lanes.
A portion of the terminal that you can walk up to, but not see in.
That same portion outside the fence.
The terminal is fenced off.
View of the terminal from across the runway.
The terminal at sunset.
The Chateau Aeroport-Mirabel.
Broken windows, curtains hanging, some lights on… creepy in concrete. There’s a Soviet Russia feel here.
View of the Chateau and the abandoned parking deck, with the terminal in the background.
An example of poor modern planning, perhaps? What do you think of this modern relic abandoned and demolished?
Want to read more? Mirabel Airport & Chateau Aeroport-Mirabel & interior photos. An article and videos of the hotel’s interior. And check out the video of the airport.
Preservation in Pink 