Quebec Jean Lesage International Airport

Québec Jean Lesage International Airport is the principal commercial airport for eastern Quebec and the second-busiest airport in the province after Montréal-Trudeau (YUL), serving the Québec City metropolitan area's roughly 840,000 residents and drawing catchment from the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Bas-Saint-Laurent, Côte-Nord, Gaspé Peninsula, and Chaudière-Appalaches regions. Located 8 mi (13 km) west of downtown Québec City at 244 ft (74 m) elevation in the borough of Sainte-Foy–Sillery–Cap-Rouge, YQB handles 95 routes across 52 destinations through 28 airlines. The airport is named for Jean Lesage, the Quebec Premier who led the Quiet Revolution of the 1960s. YQB functions as a secondary operating base for Air Canada, WestJet, Porter Airlines, and Air Transat. U.S. service is provided by United (Newark, Chicago) and American (Philadelphia) with seasonal expansion around summer tourism, though YQB does not have the dense U.S. network of larger Canadian secondary airports. European connectivity centers on Air Transat (Paris, with additional seasonal French and UK leisure destinations), Air Canada Rouge (seasonally), and occasional charter operations. The core network emphasis is on Canadian domestic points — Toronto Pearson, Montréal-Trudeau, Ottawa, Halifax, Vancouver, Calgary, Winnipeg — plus Caribbean and Mexican sun destinations via Sunwing, WestJet, Air Transat, and charter operators during the heavy November–April leisure season. The airport has grown steadily with Québec City's tourism prominence, increased cruise-ship shoulder traffic at the port, and the capital region's concentration of provincial government and technology employers. The airfield has two asphalt runways — 06/24 at 9,000 ft (2,743 m) as the primary and 11/29 at 5,700 ft (1,737 m) as crosswind — supporting full narrowbody and light widebody operations. A significantly expanded passenger terminal opened in 2008 with further concourse extensions through the 2010s, featuring a distinctive façade, consolidated Canadian and international check-in areas, and Canadian Border Services pre-clearance facilities for U.S.-bound travelers (making YQB one of relatively few Canadian secondary airports offering U.S. pre-clearance). The airport is operated by Aéroport de Québec Inc., a not-for-profit corporation under federal lease.