Stephenville International Airport

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Stephenville International Airport
Stephenvilleairport logo.png
Stephenville2.jpg
IATA: YJTICAO: CYJT
Summary
Airport type Public
Operator Stephenville Airport Corporation
Serves Stephenville, Corner Brook, Port Aux Basques
Location Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador
Elevation AMSL 80 ft / 24 m
Coordinates 48°32′29″N 058°33′00″W / 48.54139°N 58.55°W / 48.54139; -58.55 (Stephenville International Airport)Coordinates: 48°32′29″N 058°33′00″W / 48.54139°N 58.55°W / 48.54139; -58.55 (Stephenville International Airport)
Website www.cyjt.com
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
02/20 3,900 1,189 Asphalt/Concrete
09/27 10,000 3,048 Asphalt
Statistics (2008)
Aircraft Movements 2,105
Source: Canada Flight Supplement[1]
Movements from Statistics Canada.[2]

Stephenville International Airport (IATA: YJTICAO: CYJT) is an airport located 1.5 NM (2.8 km; 1.7 mi) southeast of Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It was built by the United States Air Force and operated as Ernest Harmon Air Force Base from 1941-1966.

The airport is classified as an airport of entry by NAV CANADA and is staffed by the Canada Border Services Agency. CBSA officers at this airport currently can handle aircraft with no more than 30 passengers.[1][3]

Contents

[edit] History

In 1941 the United States obtained rights to construct a United States Army Air Forces 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 USAAF base was originally referred to as Stephenville Air Base. However after the USAAF became the United States Air Force in 1947, it was renamed Ernest Harmon Air Force Base on June 23, 1948, in honour of Captain Ernest Emery Harmon. Harmon was a US Army Air Corps ace who was killed in an air crash in 1933.

On September 1, 1943, the Newfoundland Base Command transferred control of 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 1957, the Strategic Air Command assumed control.

Airport ramp & terminal building

The mandate of the base was to maintain a tanker alert force and its capability to meet and refuel Strategic Air Command jet bombers en 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 Air Lines (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 23 July 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.[4]

On 1 April 1990 the airport was further designated for alternate use, fueling only, by international scheduled air transport and for international general aviation regular use.

[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, which lasted for approximately one week.

[edit] Airlines and destinations

Airlines Destinations
Provincial Airlines[5] St. John's NL, Deer Lake
Sunwing Airlines[6] Toronto-Pearson [seasonal]
Air Saint-Pierre Saint Pierre et Miquelon[7] [charter special events]
Flair Airlines Fort McMurray [charter] All year twice weekly service

[edit] Services

Stephenville Airport in 1963
  • Budget Rent a Car
  • National Car Rental
  • Eddy's bus service
  • DRL Coachlines (passenger bus service to the rest of NL)
  • Atlantic Escapes Travel agency
  • Airport check-in counter service
  • Coffee Shop limited hours of operation
  • ATM cash machine
  • Ground transportation to and from hotels
  • Passenger lounge
  • Weather packages
  • Limousine services available on site
  • FBO services available 24 hours per day
  • Lav, water, ground power, deicing, stairs, air start and all ground handling equipment available to service aircraft up to a Boeing 747

[edit] References

[edit] External links