History
During World War II, the airport was known as "Luganville Airfield", "Bomber Field No. 2" or "Pekoa Field". It was built by the Americans on a prewar plantation.
Large numbers of Americans and aircraft used these airfields as a staging area prior to moving north into the Solomon Islands. Units assigned were:
- Headquarters, XIII Bomber Command, 13 January-20 August 1943
- Headquarters, XIII Fighter Command, 22 January–December 1943
- 5th Bombardment Group, 1 December 1942-19 August 1943
- 11th Bombardment Group, 22 July 1942-8 April 1943
- 18th Fighter Group, 11 March-17 April 1943
- 4th Reconnaissance Group, 23 January 1943-6 May 1944
- 403d Troop Carrier Group, 13 September 1943-30 August 1944
There were originally three wartime airfields on Espiritu Santo, "Bomber 1" (Pallikulo, Palikulo Field, Fighter 1), Turtle Bay Airfield and Pekoa. Today, Pekoa is the remaining wartime airfield which is still being used as an airport.
Read more about this topic: Santo-Pekoa International Airport
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“At present cats have more purchasing power and influence than the poor of this planet. Accidents of geography and colonial history should no longer determine who gets the fish.”
—Derek Wall (b. 1965)
“I am not a literary man.... I am a man of science, and I am interested in that branch of Anthropology which deals with the history of human speech.”
—J.A.H. (James Augustus Henry)
“Social history might be defined negatively as the history of a people with the politics left out.”
—G.M. (George Macaulay)