Kenmore Air Harbor Seaplane Base

Airport in Lake Union
LKE is located in Washington (state)
LKE
LKE
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LKE is located in the United States
LKE
LKE
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Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
16/34 5,000 1,524 Water
Statistics (2007)
Aircraft operations35,500
Sources: FAA,[1] WSDOT[2]
Kenmore Air DHC-3 Otter on Lake Union

Kenmore Air Harbor Seaplane Base, or Seattle Lake Union Seaplane Base,[1][2] (IATA: LKE, FAA LID: W55) is a seaplane base and international airport on Lake Union, Washington, U.S., 1 nautical mile (1.9 km; 1.2 mi) north of Downtown Seattle.[1]

Facilities and aircraft

Kenmore Air Harbor Seaplane Base is 3 acres (1.2 ha) at an elevation of 14 feet (4.3 m) above mean sea level. It has one 5,000-by-500-foot (1,520 by 150 m) seaplane landing area designated runway 16/34, which runs from Gas Works Park to the north to Lake Union Park in the south.[1][2] A different seaplane base on the same lake, Seattle Seaplanes SPB (FAA LID: 0W0), is assigned runway 18/36 that instead goes diagonally through the lake.[3]

For the 12 months ending December 31, 2022, the airport had 43,500 aircraft operations, an average of 119 per day: 82% air taxi and 18% general aviation.[1]

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

AirlinesDestinations
Harbour Air Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre
Kenmore Air Deer Harbor, Eastsound-Rosario, Friday Harbor, Lopez Island, Kenmore, Roche Harbor, Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre, Victoria-Inner Harbour, West Sound
Seasonal: Eastsound-Camp Orkila, Galiano Island, Ganges, Maple Bay, Mayne Island, North Pender Island-Port Washington, Saturna Island, South Pender Island-Bedwell Harbour

History

The first seaplane flight from Lake Union was by William E. Boeing, on June 15, 1916. The lake has been served by commercial flights from Kenmore Air since 1946. In 2018, buoys and lights were installed in the lake to warn boaters of landing planes.[4] Despite the warnings, recreational watergoers have continued to use the public lake, leading to cancelled flights.[5]

See also

  • List of airports in Washington

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f FAA Airport Form 5010 for W55 PDF. Federal Aviation Administration. Effective 21 March 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Kenmore Air Harbor SPB, City: Seattle (Lake Union), ID: W55 at Washington State DOT Airport Directory
  3. ^ "Airports - Seattle Seaplanes SPB". Washington State Department of Transportation. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
  4. ^ Clark, Kristen M. (April 27, 2018). "Growth's impact on Lake Union: More flights — and a seaplane runway". Crosscut. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  5. ^ Roberts, Paul (November 16, 2019). "Paddleboards vs. pilots: Kenmore Air, Lake Union neighbors clash over crowded waters". The Seattle Times.

External links

  • Kenmore Air
  • Aerial photo as of 10 July 1990 from USGS The National Map
  • Resources for this airport:
    • FAA airport information for W55
    • AirNav airport information for W55
    • ASN accident history for LKE
    • FlightAware airport information and live flight tracker
    • SkyVector aeronautical chart for W55