Gander
Maybe one of the better decisions we have made on this adventure might well have been taking the day off today. The winds that were predicted most definitely materialized. Steady winds out of the south at 40 km and gusting to over 50 km would have been less than a pleasant experience. 75 km in 'Granny' would have been a bit much!
So again we became tourists. We decided to visit the North Atlantic Aviation Museum. Outside the museum there are 4 airplanes. A 'Lockhead Hudson' (1 of only 8 left in the world), one of the principle aircraft used by the RCAF Ferry service during WWII ,a 'water bomber' used by Newfoundland Forestry Service to fight forest fires, a Beech 18-S (an old RCAF fighter plane), and a CF-101 Voodoo (an old fighter jet). Inside you can get into the cockpit of a DC-3 and examine 50 cal. Machine guns up close. It is a worthwhile visit and the neat part is we had no idea it existed!
Gander...an update. The 'Newfoundland Airport' was built in 1938 to serve as a refuelling station for transatlantic aviation. It was one of the main airfields used by the Royal Air Force Ferry Command (shuttling pilots to England after being trained in North America) and became a USAAF base during WWII. At its peak 10,000 Americans and 5,000 RCAF and RAF were stationed here. No wonder we can see so many ex-military housing units in Gander. This town was military! The RCAF still have a base here. Gander became a commercial airstrip after the war but in recent years has become less important with airplane's ability to not need refuelling. Gander still provides technical help to the commercial and military aircraft of many countries.
