Cheryl's Travels: Last day

Despite not being a big city, the history of Gander and its airport is very interesting.

In 1936 workers spilled off the train at milepost 213 of the Newfoundland Railway, incredulous that they had been tasked with clearing land for what would become the world’s largest airport, boasting one square mile of tarmac. With the threat of war in Europe, Gander became a strategic post for the Royal Air Force Ferry Command. Too new to appear on maps, the air base remained shrouded in secrecy as some 20,000 North American-built fighters and heavy bombers were transported overseas.

As many as 12,000 British, Canadian and American service people lived in crowded barracks beside and between the runways. After the war, efforts began to move residents a safer distance from the runways and construction began in the 1950s on the present townsite. As the world’s first air-age town, Gander was the province’s firsst planned community, completely built from scratch.

Throughout the ‘Jet Age’ of the ‘50s and ‘60s, virtually every transatlantic flight required a refueling stop at Gander. The airport terminal because a rest stop for the rich and famous, from the Hollywood who’s who to kings and presidents, and ‘star-gazing’ was a popular local pastime. In the ‘70s the Gander airport hosted the first transatlantic test flights of the SST Concorde, and the airport also served as a designated alternate landing site throughout NASA’s Space Shuttle program.

And even more recently when, on September 11th, 2001, all of North America’s airspace was closed by Transport Canada and the FAA, Gander International Airport took in 38 civilian and 4 military flights and accommodated nearly 6,700 evacuees. Residents of Gander and surrounding communities volunteered to house, feed and entertain the travellers as part of Operation Yellow Ribbon.

My last day back in Gander and I had some time before my flight in the afternoon. I thought I’d check out the North Atlantic Aviation Museum.

No this is not an oversized toy plane - it is the world’s first true flight simulator. The Link Trainer - a slightly odd but brilliant machine - came into its own during World War II when 10,000 Link Trainers were used to instruct some 500,000 military pilots.

A 1942 DC-3 cockpit

This model TAM-23, is a copy of Maynard Hill’s TAM-5 which made history in 2003, becoming the first model aircraft to cross the Atlantic Ocean.

PBY-5a Catalina/Canso used for maritime reconnaissance, search/rescue, and bombing/water bombing. This particular aircraft had its first flight in 1946 and retired in 1987.

Lockheed Hudson MkIII - light bomber, maritime reconnaissance and troop transport. This airframe is one of only seven intact Hudsons remaining worldwide and the last in the Americas.

CF-101 Voodoo - fighter/bomber, reconnaissance/interceptor

Beech 18S Expeditor

Gander Lake

Silent Witnesses Memorial - a tranquil park dedicated to the memory of the 256 individuals who lost their lives on December 12, 1985 in the Arrow Air Crash. The Silent Witness Memorial depicts an American soldier standing atop a massive rock holding the hands of a civilian boy and girl. Each child holds an olive branch indicative of the peacekeeping mission of the 101st Airborne Division “Screaming Eagles” on the Sinai Peninsula. The trio look to the future as they are surrounded by the hills and trees of the crash site.

Heritage Memorial Park features a life sized monument of Sgt. Gander and his handler. Sgt. Gander was the official mascot of the Royal Rifles of Canada and in 1941 he left with The Royal Rifles of Canada for Hong Kong Island. Gander appeared to dislike the enemy instantly and was often relentless in charging them on sight. He really was a menacing sight when standing about 2m on his hind legs. In December 1941, during the battle of Lye Mun, a Japanese grenade landed close to Canadian soldiers who were pinned down by enemy fire. Sensing the danger to his men, Gander bounded over the wounded, picked up the grenade, and in his final act of bravery, bolted towards the enemy lines. The grenade exploded before he could drop it. When the Hong Kong Memorial Wall in Ottawa was being created the veterans insisted that Gander’s name be engraved on the Memorial along with all 1,975 veterans who fought. Gander was also posthumously awarded the Dickin Medal in 2000 - he is the only Canadian animal to receive the award (the human equivalent is the Victoria Cross).