Caribou Air Force Station
Caribou Air Force Station was the first of five, United States Air Force, Air Material Command (AMC) installations that were constructed during the period of 1951 – 1953. Each of the five installations was built specifically to provide operational storage of the nuclear stockpile, and to provide a specified number of weapons to their adjacent Strategic Air Command (SAC) bases. The first four installations were built and occupied by 1953. The fifth installation, although completed in 1953, would not be utilized until 1955. The first installation, code named “Site Easy” was originally known as the “North River Depot”. It was constructed between 1951-1952, and operations began in 1952. Funds were provided in 1951 to the Armed Forces Special Weapons Project (AFSWP), for the planning and construction of an ordnance storage site in the vicinity of a new Strategic Air Command Base. The AFSWP was directed to utilize the services of the Corps of Engineers, Department of Army, for planning and construction, and was made responsible for monitoring such work, and for operational security measures during these phases. The original directive to the AFSWP stipulated that upon completion of construction the installation would be turned over to Headquarters, Air Material Command for operational responsibilities.
Santo-Pekoa International Airport
The 7th Naval Construction Battalion arrived on Santo on 11 August 1942 and began construction of more extensive air facilities to support the Guadalcanal Campaign. After completing a second fighter airfield at Turtle Bay they began constructing two bomber fields, one at Palikulo Bay known as "Bomber Field No. 1" and the other at Pekoa, known as "Bomber Field No. 2". Working in cooperation with a company of the US Army 810th Engineer Aviation Battalion, the 7th Battalion cleared, graded, and surfaced a by coral runway on the site of a prewar plantation. The 15th Naval Construction Battalion arrived on Santo on 13 October 1942 and extended the runway to with pierced steel planking over a coral base, and built taxiways, revetments, and miscellaneous structures. The completed airfield was operational in December 1942 and was known as "Bomber Field No. 2" or "Pekoa Field".