New Hampshire’s Alton Bay Ice Runway Ends A Record-Breaking Season
Story and photos by Ken Kula
New Hampshire’s Alton Bay Ice Runway has completed its 2026 winter operations with a record-setting season. Alton Bay (Airport ID is B18) is operated by the State of New Hampshire’s Department of Transportation (NHDOT) as a seaplane base during most of the year, but if weather conditions allow it, the lake surface is transformed into an ice runway during winter months. It becomes the only FAA-certified ice runway in the Lower 48 United States and continues to draw more attention each year it opens.
This year, the number of landings shattered last year’s record-setting count. During the 2026 season, 1,011 aircraft landings were recorded, up from the previous record of 764 landings in 2025.
The ice runway will only operate when there is at least a foot of ice across the entire landing area, including a 2,600 foot long runway, parallel taxiway, and parking ramp (space for approximately two dozen aircraft at a time). The ice thickness of a foot allows not only for most smaller general aviation aircraft, but those plow trucks which are used for snow clearing duties too.
The ice airport is NOTAM’d for its hours of operation, normally from 8 AM local time through late afternoon daily. There is no overnight parking allowed on the ice. Weather plays a critical role in actual operating periods as winds must be out of the north at a reasonable rate for inbound and departing craft. The ice surface plays another critical role, if it is wet the ground handling abilities of visiting planes are limited and safety cannot be compromised during taxiing, parking and startup. NHDOT staff and volunteers marshal aircraft to/from the parking area… but if conditions aren’t acceptable on the ground, the airport is shut down. Thus, over the years on a few CAVU days the runway had been closed due to unfriendly winds or slick ice.
In 2026, the runway was opened for parts of 19 days during the 5 weeks of operations which began on the last day of January and ended during the first week in March. There were no accidents this year, a testament to the ground staff and airmanship of the visiting pilots.
Visitors included an arrival from Daytona, Florida and the first ever foreign visitor – a Canadian registered Piper Tri Pacer. The largest aircraft on the ice was a Cessna Caravan this year.
The area around the Alton Bay cove has several restaurants within walking distance for breakfasts and lunches – and are frequented by pilots and passengers as well as the many spectators around the airport – including ice fishermen, snowmobilers and local townsfolk out for a walk in the snow.
Every year, the Alton Bay Ice Runway Facebook page lights up with activity by early December, and now, months after the season has ended, photos and experiences are still being posted on the site. Even though there are three seasons to go through, people are already looking forward to their next winter’s Ice Runway adventure.
