Ferndale Airfield
53U · Bigfork, Montana · Flathead County · map
Ferndale Airfield is a public-use airport, 3 miles northeast of Bigfork, Montana, 3,072 feet above sea level. Its one runway, 15/33, is 3,500 feet of grass.
Quick answers answers refresh every morning
What is the airport code for Ferndale Airfield?
Its FAA code is 53U.
Where is Ferndale Airfield?
It is 3 miles northeast of Bigfork, Montana, 3,072 feet above sea level.
How long is the runway at Ferndale Airfield?
Its one runway, 15/33, is 3,500 feet long, grass.
Does Ferndale Airfield have a control tower?
No, it has no control tower.
Where are the nearest FAA examiners to Ferndale Airfield?
3 pilot examiners and 5 aviation medical examiners work within 50 nautical miles. See them by name
Weather and planning now, the forecast, warnings, pilot reports, winds aloft, restrictions
Fetching the weather now, the forecast, the warnings in force, pilot reports and the winds aloft for Ferndale Airfield…
Wind map live wind over the area, from Windy.com
Colours show wind speed, the moving lines its direction; drag the time bar for the coming days. Map and forecast by Windy.com.
The airport facts, runways, radio, fuel and services, the FAA's remarks
The airport
- Codes
- FAA 53U
- Kind
- Airport · open to the public · publicly owned
- Elevation
- 3,072 feet above sea level
- Control tower
- No control tower
- Attended
- unattended
- Fuel and services
- no fuel reported; the services card below
- On the chart
- Great Falls sectional
- Magnetic variation
- 18E
- In the FAA's files since
- June 1976
Runway
For understanding the field, not for navigation.
| Runway | Length × width | Surface | Lights |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15/33 | 3,500 × 95 ft | Grass, good |
- Runway 15: trees 100 ft high 477 ft from the end
- Runway 33: trees 100 ft high 600 ft from the end
Radio frequencies
| Common traffic advisory (CTAF) | 122.9 |
Fuel and services as reported to the FAA
- Fuel
- none reported
- Repairs
- airframe and engine: major repairs
- Parking
- tie-downs
Nearest fields reporting jet fuel: Kalispell City Airport (14 nm northwest), Glacier Park International (18 nm northwest), Polson Airport (23 nm south), Ronan Airport (30 nm south).
Nearest fields reporting avgas: Kalispell City Airport (14 nm northwest), Glacier Park International (18 nm northwest), Polson Airport (23 nm south), Ronan Airport (30 nm south).
The FAA's file records what is sold and done at the field, as the airport manager reports it, not who sells it or the price; fuel sellers (FBOs) are not named in any public file. Airports selling jet fuel in Montana · avgas.
The FAA's remarks as written in the airport file, spelled out
- Provided compatible ingress/egress are established in order to avoid congested areas and assume safety to persons and property on the surface.
- Departure procedure straight out through pattern altitude of 4072 feet above sea level (1000 feet above ground level).
- 15/33 non-standard markings - white cones mark full runway length. Red traffic cones mark each runway threshold with 100 foot displaced threshold
- Runway 15 +100 feet trees 1570 feet from end of runway on centerline; runway 33 +80 feet trees 1500 feet from end of runway; runway 15 +15 feet road 250 feet from end of runway on centerline.
- Trees in transition surface both sides of runway full length.
- Free bicycles for airport use located in storage shed. To access use emergency frequency on lock.
- Runway 33 +50 feet tree on centerline 500 feet from end of runway at 10:1.
Flights and activity in the air now, the airlines, based aircraft, takeoffs and landings
Activity now checking the volunteer receiver network…
Within ten miles
- Looking…
Arrivals and departures, last hour
- Looking…
From the volunteer receiver network, a few minutes behind at most; aircraft whose owners asked the FAA not to be displayed are left out; no person is named. Open the live map here.
Who flies and works here aircraft registered in town, the companies, the examiners nearby
Aircraft registered in Bigfork from the FAA register
94 aircraft are registered to owners in Bigfork, Montana: 73 piston singles, 7 piston twins, 4 business jets, 3 turboprops, 2 weight-shift and powered parachutes. Not every one of them is based at this airport; the based-aircraft count above is the FAA's figure for this airport alone.
Companies and organisations in town with two or more aircraft:
Individuals are counted, not named (the site's policy at this time). All aircraft registered in Montana.
Examiners and inspectors nearby designated by the FAA · within 50 nautical miles
3 pilot examiners (the FAA's designated pilot examiners, who give the practical tests for pilot certificates) are based within 50 nautical miles: 2 for private pilot, 2 for commercial and instrument, 1 for airline transport pilot, 1 for flight instructor, 1 for sport pilot; 1 for airplanes, 1 for multi-engine airplanes, 1 for seaplanes, 1 for helicopters. Also nearby: 5 aviation medical examiners, 1 training center examiner.
- Justin Bench instructor renewals, military competency · Glacier Park International · Kalispell, MT (18 nm) · (619) 251-0113 · [email protected]
- Perry Lee Brown private pilot, commercial and instrument, instrument instructor, sport pilot; airplanes, multi-engine airplanes, seaplanes · Backcountry Flying Experiences · Kalispell, MT (18 nm) · (406) 249-3637 · [email protected]
- James Arthur Heckman private pilot, commercial and instrument, airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot, instructor renewals, military competency, ground instructor, foreign pilot certificates; helicopters · Whitefish, MT (24 nm) · (360) 701-1696 · [email protected]
All 9 nearby, by kind, with contact details
What each kind does
- DPE: Designated Pilot Examiner: gives the practical tests (checkrides) for pilot certificates and ratings.
- AME: Aviation Medical Examiner: a doctor who issues the medical certificates pilots must hold.
- DCTO-E: Designee at a certificated training organisation.
Designees are listed with the name and contact details the FAA publishes for them on its designee locator (read October 10, 2026): the FAA lists them so that pilots, mechanics and companies can find them. Private individuals are not named, the site's policy at this time. A designee who would rather not appear here can ask us through the contact address on the About page. Each designee is placed at the main public airport of the town the FAA lists (or the nearest one to its zip code), so "nearby" means the town, not an exact address. All examiners by state.
Safety record the NTSB's cases at or near this airport
Accidents and incidents at or near this airport NTSB records · 5 since 1982, 2 fatal
Cases the NTSB recorded with this as the nearest airport, newest first. Each opens the full report in plain English. The country as a whole: Where accidents happen.
Nearby within 30 nautical miles
Connections how this airport links to the rest of the register
- Aircraft registered in Bigfork 94 aircraft · 73 piston singles, 7 piston twins, 4 business jets
- Uavionix CORP 4 aircraft in town
- Southwest Associates LLC 2 aircraft in town
- P51D Mustang LLC 2 aircraft in town
- Lima Golf Investments LLC 2 aircraft in town
- NTSB accidents and incidents at or near this airport 5 since 1982 · 2 fatal
- Accidents and incidents in Montana 1,119 since 1982 · 164 in the last ten years
- Nearby landing places within 30 nautical miles 8 airports, heliports and seaplane bases
- Public-use airports in Montana 127 landing places
- Montana 6,041 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/airport/53U.json.
Facts from the FAA's airport file effective October 1, 2026, written out in plain English; weather from the National Weather Service's aviation weather service; registered aircraft from the FAA register as of October 26, 2026; accidents from the NTSB's public database. Owners are shown only when they are an organisation; no person is named. Check the official sources before a flight: this page is for understanding an airport, not for planning one.