Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport

Yes, I've never seen a big Canadian style "flying club" in the US like I've seen at Ottawa, Oshawa (now defunct, I'm afraid) and Brampton. Didn't a lot of Canadian flying clubs get started with cheap war surplus training aircraft? I think I read a history of the Oshawa flying club that said they got a few Moths and similar trainers from the Commonwealth Training Plan.

In the U.S., isn't a "flying club" a few people who get together to buy and operate a plane or two? In Canada, it's often a big, non-profit FBO and flight school (sometimes with a pilot shop as well), because that's the way flight training got started in Canada in the 1920s and 30s.

Sometimes when I'm in Ottawa with nothing better to do, I go to the Ottawa Flying Club to leach their wifi, eat something from the snackbar and watch the planes go by. I wish my flying club had a club house.

This is a high-quality FBO (a bit nicer than the Esso Avitat next door), but also pricey, with lots of fees and expensive gas. If you're meeting customs, you have to make at least a short stop at the Esso or Shell (your choice), but otherwise, if you don't need the shiny FBO, the Ottawa Flying Club on the north field is a less expensive option for fuel and parking.

The Esso and Shell on the south field are fairly expensive for fuel and have high parking and ramp fees. Esso used to waive the ramp fee when you were meeting customs there, but I don't know if they still do that. If you don't need the full FBO red carpet service (and aren't arriving late in the evening), the Ottawa Flying Club on the north field is a cheaper option for fuel and parking.