Frobisher Bay Air Force Base
Encyclopedia
Frobisher Bay Air Base is a former United States Air Force
facility adjacent to the town of Iqaluit, Nunavut
(formerly Frobisher Bay, Northwest Territories
); 1299 mi (2,090.5 km) north of Ottawa
, Ontario
. It was closed in 1963.
, the United States established a weather/radio station at this site, code-named "Crystal II". It was one of three "Crystal" weather sites in the Canadian Arctic Region, Fort Chimo (now Kuujjuaq), Quebec
being "Crystal I", and a station on Padloping Island
being "Crystal III". A detachment of the 8th Weather Squadron, Air Transport Command
(ATC) took up residence at the station on 1 October 1942. The initial mission of the Crystal sites was to provide long-range weather information to the combat forces then building up in the United Kingdom
.
Beginning in 1943, the North Atlantic Division, ATC, constructed an airstrip at Crystal II as part of the Crimson Route
for ferrying aircraft between the United States and Great Britain. The airfield at Crystal II was known as ATC Station #10. It was planned to be a transport hub between the Eastern Route, which originated at Presque Isle Army Airfield, Maine and the Central Route, which originated at Romulus Army Airfield (Detroit Airport), Michigan. From Crytstal II, the aircraft would be ferried across over Baffin Island; Greenland; Iceland and delivered to Scotland. The development of the Mid-Atlantic Transport through the Azores led to the cancellation of the Crystal Route project in 1943. The United States presence at Crystal I was reduced to a skeleton weather squadron.
The use of Frobisher Bay declined with the end of World War II, with jurisdiction of the facility being transferred to Military Air Transport Service
(MATS) in 1948, under its Air Weather Service
(ARS). A small detachment of communications personnel of the 135th Army Airways Communications Service Squadron remained manning a communications station, along with the cadre of the original 8th Weather Squadron. The airfield remained open for use by transient aircraft and for MATS to airlift supplies and equipment to the site. During the recovery of the crew of the downed B-29 Kee Bird
in 1947, aircraft were flown to Crystal II to assist in the rescue, if needed. The station was inactivated on 1 September 1950.
and the possibility of the Soviet Union
using great circle routes over the Arctic
to send manned bombers to attack the United States. Northeast Air Command
reactivated the base on 1 October 1951 and established the 6603d Air Base Wing as the host unit under the 64th Air Division. Under USAF control, the former Crystal II base became known as Frobisher Bay Air Base.
Strategic Air Command
(SAC) became a major tenant organization at Frobisher AB. It was used by SAC to support "Project Nanook", the ongoing strategic reconnaissance mission over the Arctic to map the region and develop navigation routes for SAC to transit the Arctic Region in the event active hostilities erupted. Very long range reconnaissance aircraft (primarily RB-29s) would use Frobisher as a refueling stop and as an emergency airfield. The facilities at Crystal II were also used during the construction of Thule Air Base
, Greenland. The MATS Air/Sea Rescue Service was also assigned to Frobisher Bay AB as a tenant organization, with the 54th Air Rescue Squadron operating from the base.
In the early 1950s, plans for the building of the Distant Early Warning Line
(DEW Line), a system of early warning Radar stations in the high latitudes of North America were being developed. A radar station was built by the United States at Frobisher Bay beginning in 1953 63°46′50"N 068°32′38"W , with the Northeast Air Command (NEAC) activating the 926th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
at a radar site approximately a mile to the north of the airfield and station complex. The radar site operated the following radars:
As a GCI base, the 926th's role was to guide interceptor aircraft toward unidentified intruders picked up on the unit's radar scopes. These interceptors were assigned to the 64th Air Division at Goose AFB, Labrador.
In 1954, an agreement between the United States and Canada led to the formal agreement to construct the DEW Line, and survey crews used Frobisher Bay to survey sites for the radar stations across the Canadian Arctic from Frobisher Bay to the Alaska
/Yukon Territory and east into Greenland
. The United States Army Corps of Engineers deployed the 826th Engineering Aviation Battalion to the base in 1954 to support the project.
Frobisher Bay AB became an important staging point, as supplies and equipment for the construction of the DEW Line were shipped via naval transport ships to the port facilities at the base. Large numbers of MATS transport aircraft brought essential equipment and personnel to the base, which was used as a support facility. At one time Frobisher Bay AB saw 300 aircraft movements a day. Once the DEW Line opened in 1957 the number of aircraft using the base subsided and a second hiatus visited Frobisher Bay. A detachment of the ADC 4601st Support Group from Paramus, New Jersey operated from the base supporting the numerous DEW line stations.
The development of aerial refueling with the introduction of the KC-97 Stratotanker
and also the opening of the large runway at Thule AB for use by intercontinental bombers such as the B-36 and B-47 (neither of which could use the relatively short runway at Frobisher Bay) led SAC to close its facilities in 1953.
In 1957 NEAC was inactivated and Air Defense Command (AD) assumed jurisdiction of the facility. The 4733d Air Defense Group
took over as host unit from the NEAC 6603d ABW, including control of the 926th AC&W Suadron. A detachment from the SAC 4082d Strategic Wing from Goose AFB, Labrador, also took up station at Frobisher Bay AB
With the completion of DEW line construction, Frobisher Bay became something of a backwater, with SAC transient aircraft using the base for staging KC-97 tankers and also using it for tactical airlift operations to and from its bases in Greenland. MATS cargo flights used the airfield for transshipments of equipment and supplies, also logistically supporting the base and personnel transport, (usually operated by 1607th Air Transport Wing
C-124 Globemaster II
s from Dover AFB). The 4733d ADG was downgraded, being replaced by the 4085th Air Base Squadron on 1 May 1958 to manage support issues at the base.
Most of the ADC functions at Frobisher Bay Air Base were taken over by the Goose Air Defense Sector
at Goose AB on 1 April 1960. ADC inactivated the radar station on 1 November 1961, ending the surveillence mission of the base. The facility was closed by SAC in 1963, shifting its operations to Thule AB.
continued as a commercial airport.
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
facility adjacent to the town of Iqaluit, Nunavut
Nunavut
Nunavut is the largest and newest federal territory of Canada; it was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act, though the actual boundaries had been established in 1993...
(formerly Frobisher Bay, Northwest Territories
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south...
); 1299 mi (2,090.5 km) north of Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
. It was closed in 1963.
World War II
During World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the United States established a weather/radio station at this site, code-named "Crystal II". It was one of three "Crystal" weather sites in the Canadian Arctic Region, Fort Chimo (now Kuujjuaq), Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
being "Crystal I", and a station on Padloping Island
Padloping Island
Padloping Island is an uninhabited island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. It is located in Davis Strait's Merchants Bay off the eastern coast of Baffin Island...
being "Crystal III". A detachment of the 8th Weather Squadron, Air Transport Command
Air Transport Command
Air Transport Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its mission was to meet the urgent demand for the speedy reinforcement of the United States' military bases worldwide during World War II, using an air supply system to supplement surface transport...
(ATC) took up residence at the station on 1 October 1942. The initial mission of the Crystal sites was to provide long-range weather information to the combat forces then building up in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
Beginning in 1943, the North Atlantic Division, ATC, constructed an airstrip at Crystal II as part of the Crimson Route
Crimson Route
The Crimson Route was a set of joint United States and Canadian transport routes planned for ferrying planes and material from North America to Europe during World War II...
for ferrying aircraft between the United States and Great Britain. The airfield at Crystal II was known as ATC Station #10. It was planned to be a transport hub between the Eastern Route, which originated at Presque Isle Army Airfield, Maine and the Central Route, which originated at Romulus Army Airfield (Detroit Airport), Michigan. From Crytstal II, the aircraft would be ferried across over Baffin Island; Greenland; Iceland and delivered to Scotland. The development of the Mid-Atlantic Transport through the Azores led to the cancellation of the Crystal Route project in 1943. The United States presence at Crystal I was reduced to a skeleton weather squadron.
The use of Frobisher Bay declined with the end of World War II, with jurisdiction of the facility being transferred to Military Air Transport Service
Military Air Transport Service
The Military Air Transport Service is an inactive Department of Defense Unified Command. Activated on 1 June 1948, MATS was a consolidation of the United States Navy Naval Air Transport Service and the United States Air Force Air Transport Command into a single, joint, unified command...
(MATS) in 1948, under its Air Weather Service
Air Force Weather Agency
The Air Force Weather Agency is a Field Operating Agency and the lead military meteorology center of the United States Air Force...
(ARS). A small detachment of communications personnel of the 135th Army Airways Communications Service Squadron remained manning a communications station, along with the cadre of the original 8th Weather Squadron. The airfield remained open for use by transient aircraft and for MATS to airlift supplies and equipment to the site. During the recovery of the crew of the downed B-29 Kee Bird
Kee Bird
The Kee Bird was a United States Army Air Forces B-29-95-BW Superfortress, 45-21768, of the 46th Reconnaissance Squadron, that became marooned after making an emergency landing in northwest Greenland during a secret Cold War spying mission on 21 February 1947...
in 1947, aircraft were flown to Crystal II to assist in the rescue, if needed. The station was inactivated on 1 September 1950.
Cold War
The advantages of having airfields in the high latitudes of North America was realized with the advent of the Cold WarCold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
and the possibility of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
using great circle routes over the Arctic
Arctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
to send manned bombers to attack the United States. Northeast Air Command
Northeast Air Command
The Northeast Air Command was a short-lived organization in the United States Air Force tasked with the operation and defense of air bases in Greenland, Labrador and Newfoundland. It was formed in 1950 from the facilities of the United States established during World War II in Northeast Canada,...
reactivated the base on 1 October 1951 and established the 6603d Air Base Wing as the host unit under the 64th Air Division. Under USAF control, the former Crystal II base became known as Frobisher Bay Air Base.
Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command
The Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...
(SAC) became a major tenant organization at Frobisher AB. It was used by SAC to support "Project Nanook", the ongoing strategic reconnaissance mission over the Arctic to map the region and develop navigation routes for SAC to transit the Arctic Region in the event active hostilities erupted. Very long range reconnaissance aircraft (primarily RB-29s) would use Frobisher as a refueling stop and as an emergency airfield. The facilities at Crystal II were also used during the construction of Thule Air Base
Thule Air Base
Thule Air Base or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport , is the United States Air Force's northernmost base, located north of the Arctic Circle and from the North Pole on the northwest side of the island of Greenland. It is approximately east of the North Magnetic Pole.-Overview:Thule Air Base is the...
, Greenland. The MATS Air/Sea Rescue Service was also assigned to Frobisher Bay AB as a tenant organization, with the 54th Air Rescue Squadron operating from the base.
In the early 1950s, plans for the building of the Distant Early Warning Line
Distant Early Warning Line
The Distant Early Warning Line, also known as the DEW Line or Early Warning Line, was a system of radar stations in the far northern Arctic region of Canada, with additional stations along the North Coast and Aleutian Islands of Alaska, in addition to the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Iceland...
(DEW Line), a system of early warning Radar stations in the high latitudes of North America were being developed. A radar station was built by the United States at Frobisher Bay beginning in 1953 63°46′50"N 068°32′38"W , with the Northeast Air Command (NEAC) activating the 926th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
926th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
The 926th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the Goose Air Defense Sector, Air Defense Command, stationed at Frobisher Bay Air Base, Northwest Territories, Canada...
at a radar site approximately a mile to the north of the airfield and station complex. The radar site operated the following radars:
- Search Radars: AN/FPS-3C, AN/FPS-502, AN/FPS-20A
- Height Radars: AN/TPS-502
As a GCI base, the 926th's role was to guide interceptor aircraft toward unidentified intruders picked up on the unit's radar scopes. These interceptors were assigned to the 64th Air Division at Goose AFB, Labrador.
In 1954, an agreement between the United States and Canada led to the formal agreement to construct the DEW Line, and survey crews used Frobisher Bay to survey sites for the radar stations across the Canadian Arctic from Frobisher Bay to the Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
/Yukon Territory and east into Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
. The United States Army Corps of Engineers deployed the 826th Engineering Aviation Battalion to the base in 1954 to support the project.
Frobisher Bay AB became an important staging point, as supplies and equipment for the construction of the DEW Line were shipped via naval transport ships to the port facilities at the base. Large numbers of MATS transport aircraft brought essential equipment and personnel to the base, which was used as a support facility. At one time Frobisher Bay AB saw 300 aircraft movements a day. Once the DEW Line opened in 1957 the number of aircraft using the base subsided and a second hiatus visited Frobisher Bay. A detachment of the ADC 4601st Support Group from Paramus, New Jersey operated from the base supporting the numerous DEW line stations.
The development of aerial refueling with the introduction of the KC-97 Stratotanker
KC-97 Stratotanker
The Boeing KC-97 Stratotanker was a United States strategic tanker aircraft based on the Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter. It was succeeded by the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker.-Design and development:...
and also the opening of the large runway at Thule AB for use by intercontinental bombers such as the B-36 and B-47 (neither of which could use the relatively short runway at Frobisher Bay) led SAC to close its facilities in 1953.
In 1957 NEAC was inactivated and Air Defense Command (AD) assumed jurisdiction of the facility. The 4733d Air Defense Group
4733d Air Defense Group
The 4733d Air Defense Group is a discontinued United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the 64th Air Division, being stationed at Frobisher Bay AB, Baffin Island, Northwest Territories, Canada. It was last active on 1 May 1958...
took over as host unit from the NEAC 6603d ABW, including control of the 926th AC&W Suadron. A detachment from the SAC 4082d Strategic Wing from Goose AFB, Labrador, also took up station at Frobisher Bay AB
With the completion of DEW line construction, Frobisher Bay became something of a backwater, with SAC transient aircraft using the base for staging KC-97 tankers and also using it for tactical airlift operations to and from its bases in Greenland. MATS cargo flights used the airfield for transshipments of equipment and supplies, also logistically supporting the base and personnel transport, (usually operated by 1607th Air Transport Wing
1607th Air Transport Wing
The 1607th Air Transport Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last was assigned to the Eastern Transport Air Force, Military Air Transport Service, stationed at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware...
C-124 Globemaster II
C-124 Globemaster II
The Douglas C-124 Globemaster II, nicknamed "Old Shakey", was a heavy-lift cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company in Long Beach, California....
s from Dover AFB). The 4733d ADG was downgraded, being replaced by the 4085th Air Base Squadron on 1 May 1958 to manage support issues at the base.
Most of the ADC functions at Frobisher Bay Air Base were taken over by the Goose Air Defense Sector
Goose Air Defense Sector
The Goose Air Defense Sector is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the 26th Air Division, being stationed at Goose Air Force Base, Labrador, Canada. It was inactivated on 1 April 1966 and replaced by the 37th Air Division.-History:Command and control...
at Goose AB on 1 April 1960. ADC inactivated the radar station on 1 November 1961, ending the surveillence mission of the base. The facility was closed by SAC in 1963, shifting its operations to Thule AB.
Closure
When the USAF closed its base in 1963, Iqaluit AirportIqaluit Airport
Iqaluit Airport serves Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada and is located adjacent to the town. It is operated by the government of Nunavut. It hosts scheduled passenger service from Ottawa, Montreal, Rankin Inlet and Kuujjuaq on carriers such as First Air and Canadian North, as well as from smaller...
continued as a commercial airport.