Information Category | 17-03-08 03:30 GMT | Posted by Ian Chicken

The RAF manages Wideawake airfield at Ascension Island as an invaluable link and airhead for the South Atlantic, especially the Falkland Islands and St Helena. A detachment of 1 Air Mobility Wing personnel from RAF Lyneham ensure military people and freight using the Island as part of their flights are handled professionally.

Wikipedia Entry about the Airfileld
The first aircraft to land on Ascension Island was a Fairey Swordfish from HMS Archer in 1942. In 1943 the United States Army Air Force set up Wideawake Airfield, by arrangement with the British government. The airfield was abandoned at the end of the war, and fell into disuse. The Americans returned in 1956, and reopened the airfield in 1957. The runway was lengthened and widened in the mid 1960s to allow for larger aircraft. USAF then, and later NASA established missile tracking facilities based at Cat Hill. Although NASA usage ended in 1967, USAF continues its usage with several hundred personnel, mostly contractors.

RAF Ascension Island was re-garrissoned by the RAF in 1982 and used extensively as a staging base during the Falklands War. Operation Black Buck, the long range bombing raids, were carried out from there. The base continues this stating post role for the Falkland Islands, for both the RAF and the United States Air Force.

Ascension Island Hertage site has a good bit of information about the airfiled and can be found at the following link
http://heritage.org.ac/avis11.htm