Well before it became Canada’s busiest airport, Toronto Pearson International Airport — once known as Malton Airport — had humble beginnings rooted in rural farmland.
In the 1920s, Frank Chapman’s 100-acre farm sat just south of Malton, a small community located on the Grand Trunk Railway northwest of Toronto. The area, which was surrounded by flat and expansive land was ideal for aviation development.
In April 1937, agents representing the Toronto Harbour Commission started approaching farmers in the area, as the federal government began its search for a location for the new Trans-Canada Air Lines.
Aerial view of the airport in 1938.
Although airfields near Dufferin at Lawrence and Wilson were also considered, this rural land in Malton, which consisted of 13 farms at the time, was selected. The purchase price ranged from $120 to $210 per acre, and as a result, Malton Airport was officially built in 1937.
Frank Chapman’s original farmhouse.
Three runways were constructed, each 3,000 feet long and 150 feet wide, only two of which were paved. The first official landing at Malton Airport was on Aug. 29, 1938, at 1:10 p.m., when an American Airways DC-3 from Buffalo landed.
The plane was carrying airline officials who were visiting Toronto for the annual Canadian National Exhibition (CNE).
American Airways DC-3 landing at Malton Airport in 1939.
The Toronto Harbour Commission officially received its licence to operate the airport on Jan. 24, 1939.
Chapman’s three-storey farmhouse was used as the administration terminal for 175 staff members. When the Toronto Harbour Commission began operating the airport in 1939, a frame terminal building was built and used until 1949, when a larger terminal was constructed by Trans Canada Air Lines to accommodate 400,000 passengers annually.
Initially serving as a secondary airport to the Island Airport, now known as Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, Malton Airport started off with just one terminal. However, as demand for flights from Malton grew, additional terminals were constructed, allowing the airport to surpass the Island Airport in both size and capacity.
Malton Airport in 1939.
During World War II, the federal government leased the airport for $1 a year and used it as a military training centre until the end of the war.
In the post-war years, the airport experienced significant expansion. By 1946, 48 airplanes were operating daily out of Malton, and in the 1950s, the airport expanded further with the purchase of an additional 2,000 acres.
Aerial view of the airport in 1948.
In 1962, another 1,000 acres were acquired, bringing the airport’s total size to 4,428 acres.
The Airport was renamed Toronto International Airport in 1960 and officially renamed Lester B. Pearson International Airport in 1984.
Toronto International Airport in 1960.
As demand for air travel grew, so too did the airport. The $26 million expansion in 1963 introduced the Aeroquay Terminal 1, which boasted a modern circular design and was built to handle over three million passengers annually.
Over the years, many notable figures passed through Malton Airport, including Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip in 1951, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton in 1964, and John Lennon and Yoko Ono in 1969.
On July 5, 1970, the airport witnessed one of its worst aviation disasters. Air Canada Flight 621 departed Montreal with 100 passengers and nine crew members on board and was headed for Los Angeles with a stopover at Malton Airport.
During its approach to the airport, the aircraft’s right wing struck the ground, although the pilot was able to pull up and fly north away from the airport. At around 8 a.m., the engines on the wing exploded, and the aircraft crashed in a former farm field in Castlemore, roughly 10 kilometres north of the airport. All passengers and crew members on the plane lost their lives.
Three Air Canada planes on the apron, Toronto International Airport in August 1970.
Aeroquay 1 was eventually closed in 2004 after handling nearly nine million passengers per year. Terminal 2 was opened in 1972, and Terminal 3 in 1991.
Pearson currently operates out of two terminals designed with a linear concept. Terminal 2 was officially demolished in 2008.
Pearson Airport in 1991.
Today, Toronto Pearson International Airport is Canada’s largest airport, handling twice as many passengers as the second-largest air travel hub in Vancouver. It also offers more connections to global destinations than all but four airports worldwide — a stark contrast to the rural farmlands where it all began.
