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Gander International Airport is located in Gander , Newfoundland And Labrador , Canada and is currently run by the Gander Airport Authority . Canadian Forces Base 9 Wing Gander (see below) shares the airfield but it is a separate entity. HISTORY Construction of the airport began in 1936 and it was opened in 1938 , with its first landing on January 11 of that year, by Captain Douglas Fraser flying a Fox Moth of Imperial Airways . Within a few years it had four runways and was the largest airport in the world. Its official name until 1941 was Newfoundland Airport. Gander was a major airport during the Second World War due to the heavy transit traffic across the North Atlantic to the United Kingdom . Almost all the planes destined for the European front travelled through Gander. Its importance was largely a matter of geography, as Gander lies almost precisely on the Great Circle route between the major cities of the U.S. East Coast and London and was sufficiently close to Europe to allow the piston-engined planes of that day to make a non-refueled transatlantic crossing from there. After the war, as transatlantic traffic increased, Gander retained its prominence due to the need for a refueling point. Airlines such as Trans-Canada Airways (later Air Canada ), British Overseas Airways Corporation (later British Airways ), and Pan American World Airways made Gander their main refueling point. With the advent of jet aircraft with extended ranges in the late 1960 s, the need for a refueling point ceased on most flights. Gander has steadily decreased in importance since then, but it remains the home of Gander Control , which with Shanwick Oceanic Control , control the high level airways of the North Atlantic . Thus every plane travelling to and from Europe or North America must talk to either or both of these ATCs. During the Cold War Gander was also notable for the number of persons from the former Warsaw Pact nations who defected there. It was one of the few refueling points where airplanes could stop en route from eastern Europe or the Soviet Union to Cuba . On December 12 , 1985 Arrow Air Flight 1285 crashed on take-off from runway 21. The disaster claimed the lives of 8 crew and 248 soldiers from the U.S. Army 's 101st Airborne Division who were returning home for Christmas from a Peacekeeping deployment in the Middle East . The impact on the south side of the Trans-Canada Highway on the shore of Gander Lake left a charred clearing in the forest where a memorial now stands to those who lost their lives in Canada's most deadly air crash. On September 11 , 2001 , with United States airspace closed due to The Terrorist Attacks , Gander International played host to 39 airliners, totaling 6,122 passengers and 473 crew as part of Operation Yellow Ribbon . Gander International received more flights than any other Canadian airport involved in the operation other than Halifax (The airport that received the highest number of passengers was Vancouver ). Much of this was because Transport Canada and NAV CANADA instructed pilots coming from Europe to avoid the major airports in Central Canada, like Lester B. Pearson in Toronto and Montréal-Dorval . The reception these travellers received has been one of the most widely reported happy stories surrounding that day. The airport was the site for Canada's memorial service to mark the First Anniversary Of The Attack , which Prime Minister Jean Chrétien , Transport Minister David Collenette , U.S. Ambassador to Canada Paul Cellucci , and provincial and local officials presided over. 2,500 of the 6,600 people that were diverted there the year before also attended the ceremony. RUNWAYS Currently, Gander has two active runways: runway 13-31 of 8,900 x 200 feet (2,712 x 61 m), and runway 03-21 (changed from 04-22 in August 2004) which measures 10,200 x 200 feet (3,109 x 61 m). Runway 09-27 at 1875 x 50 feet (571 x 15 m) is for daytime, VFR use only and is closed from 01 December until 30 June. The size of the Gander airport allows it to be an alternative landing site for the US Space Shuttle. COMPETITION FOR TRANS-ATLANTIC FLIGHTS Gander competes with Bangor International Airport , located in Bangor, Maine for Trans-Atlantic flights. Although Gander has a slight edge over Bangor in the number of daily Trans-Atlantic flights, Bangor has become more and more active with Trans-Atlantic flights. This is due to the Iraq war with troops going to and coming home from Iraq. A common visitor to Gander is Evergreen International Airlines . THE RCAF YEARS At the beginning of World War II , the strategic importance of the new airport was realized. The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) took over in 1940 when No. 10 Bomber and Reconnaissance (BR) Squadron began operating. This squadron flew Douglas Digby s and later, Liberator s This squadron was responsible for protecting supply convoys from enemy submarines. A little later, Gander became a staging point for bombers being transferred, or ferried, to the war in Europe. The airport officially became known as RCAF Station Gander in 1941. By 1943, Gander was the largest RCAF station world-wide. The Canadian Army had a strong presence at Gander providing airfield anti-aircraft and airfield defense. Several RCAF Squadrons were based at Gander. No 10 BR Squadron remained until August 1945 and was reinforced at times by No. 5 BR Squadron and No. 116 BR Squadron flying Canso s for anti-submarine patrols and Search And Rescue . From 1942 Hurricane fighters of 126, 127 and 129 Squadron were based at Gander. Also, throughout the war, the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) maintained a communications station at Gander. Known as Naval Radio Station Gander, its main task was High Frequency Direction Finding (HFDF) and communications monitoring. At the end of the war, the airport was handed back to the Newfoundland Government. RCAF Station Gander was disbanded in March 1946. The RCN, however, remained. During the Cold War , Canada and the USA constructed a radar site of the Pinetree Radar Line . The RCAF was reactivated in Gander when 226 Aircraft Control and Warning (AC&W) squadron was set up manage the radar site. In 1966 the RCAF's No. 226 AC&W began administering the Naval Radio Station. CANADIAN FORCES STATION GANDER In 1968 the Canadian military was unified and reorganized and RCAF Station Gander became Canadian Forces Station Gander (CFS Gander). In 1970 a new expanded communications facility was nearing completion, and because of the size, the Canadian Forces Communications Command took over operational control of CFS Gander. The new facility began operation in 1971 and operations at the old naval site were shut down. CFS Gander was a non-flying unit but was in the front line of Canada’s defense system. The station was often required to provide support for detachments of squadron personnel from CFB Chatham , operating CF-101 Voodoo s. In 1977, a detachment of 424 Squadron, flying CH-113 Labrador helicopters moved to Gander to provide Search And Rescue (SAR) operations. Having found a permanent home at Gander, the SAR helicopters were no longer a 424 Squadron detachment and a new unit identifier was required. Thus, in May 1977, 103 Rescue Unit (RU) was reactivated at Gander. Air Command also regained control of CFS Gander from Canadian Forces Communications Command in May 1977. CANADIAN FORCES BASE 9 WING GANDER By 1984 CFS Gander was the largest station in the Canadian Forces. Because Gander was such a large establishment and because 103 Rescue Unit had such a high profile, the station was officially upgraded to Base status and became Canadian Forces Base Gander (CFB Gander) in March 1984. In the early 1990s, the government started cutting back military expenditures. Many bases across Canada were closed, and to reflect new priorities, Air Command units were formed into Wings. Gander became Canadian Forces Base 9 Wing Gander in April 1993. It is located at Gander International Airport and is the principal military establishment in Newfoundland. Among its many roles, 9 Wing Gander is responsible for providing search and rescue services throughout Newfoundland and Labrador , northeastern Quebec , the Maritimes, the lower Arctic and offshore waters of these regions. Crews of 103 Search And Rescue Squadron are on 24-hour standby, ready to answer the call in one of the busiest search and rescue regions in Canada. 103 Squadron also offers transient Aircraft servicing to visiting Canadian Forces and allied aircraft as requested. 9 Wing includes 9 Air Reserve Augmentation Flight. It augments and support the operations, administrative and technical functions of the base. Its Airfield Engineers Flight provides trained engineer reservists from various trades to support UN and Canadian Forces deployments worldwide. 9 Wing is also host to Lietrim Detachment which operates and maintains signals intelligence. 9 Wing Telecommunications provides all military units at Gander with message transmission and reception services. In addition, 9 Wing operates and maintains a Canadian Coastal Radar on behalf of Fighter Group Canadian NORAD Region Headquarters. REFERENCES
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