Stephenville Airport
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| Stephenville Airport Stephenville International Airport |
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| IATA: YJT - ICAO: CYJT | |||
| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Public | ||
| Operator | Stephenville Airport Corporation | ||
| Serves | Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 80 ft (24 m) | ||
| Coordinates | |||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| ft | m | ||
| 02/20 | 3,900 | 1,189 | Asphalt/Concrete |
| 09/27 | 10,000 | 3,048 | Asphalt |
Stephenville Airport (IATA: YJT, ICAO: CYJT) is an airport located 1.5 nautical miles (2.8 km) southeast of Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It was built by the United States Air Force and operated as Ernest Harmon AFB from 1941-1966.
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[edit] History
In 1941 the United States obtained rights to construct an air force base in the St. George's Bay area of Newfoundland. The U.S. 76th Congress approved the 99 year lease and in April 1941, construction began.
The air force base was originally referred to as Stephenville Air Base. However, it was renamed Ernest Harmon Air Force Base on June 23, 1948, in honor of Captain Ernest Emery Harmon. Harmon was a U.S. Army Corps ace who was killed in an air crash in 1933.
On September 1, 1943, the Newfoundland Base Command transferred control of the Harmon Field to the North Atlantic Wing, Air Transport Command. The base became a part of the Northeast Air Command in October, 1950. Then in April of 1957, the Strategic Air Command assumed control.
The mandate of the base was to maintain a tanker alert force and its capability to meet and refuel Strategic Air Command jet bombers on route to targets. The KC-97 Stratotanker was employed in this task.
The base was also used as a refueling stop for transatlantic military flights. In addition, Harmon supported three Air Defense Command units. In 1957, the Canadian Department of Transportation constructed an airport terminal to accommodate Trans Canada Airlines (now Air Canada). 1966 saw the closure of the U.S. Air Force Base in Stephenville.
The airport is now owned and operated by the local Airport Authority, the Stephenville Airport Corporation Inc. Stephenville Airport was officially designated as an alternate in the Trans Oceanic Plane Stop (TOPS) program on July 23, 1970.
Since the late 1990s, Stephenville has been designated as one of five Canadian airports suitable as an emergency landing site for the Space Shuttle. [1]
On April 1, 1990 the airport was further designated for alternate use, fueling only, by international scheduled air transport and for international general aviation regular use.
In recent years, Stephenville has become a favorite technical stop for international flights on route to Europe.
[edit] Operation Yellow Ribbon
On September 11, 2001, 8 civilian airliners made unscheduled landings at the Stephenville Airport following the closure of North American airspace in the wake of the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, DC. An unwitting participant in Operation Yellow Ribbon, the town managed to host the stranded passengers for approximately one week.
[edit] Airlines
[edit] References
- Canada Flight Supplement. Effective 0901Z 23 November 2006 to 0901Z 18 January 2007.
[edit] External links
- Airport Website
- Entry in the Canadian Owners and Pilots Association's Places to Fly Airport Directory
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