Ernest Harmon Air Force Base | |||||||||||
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| Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador | |||||||||||
 Stephenville Airport, formerly Ernest Harmon AFB | |||||||||||
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  Ernest Harmon Air Force Base Location on Newfoundland | |||||||||||
| Coordinates | 48°32′38″N 058°33′12″W / 48.54389°N 58.55333°W | ||||||||||
| Type | Air Force Base | ||||||||||
| Site information | |||||||||||
| Owner | Department of Defense | ||||||||||
| Operator |  United States Air Force | ||||||||||
| Civilian operator | Stephenville Airport Corporation | ||||||||||
| Site history | |||||||||||
| Built | 1941 | ||||||||||
| Built by | United States Air Force | ||||||||||
| In use | 1941 – 1966 | ||||||||||
| Fate |
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| Garrison information | |||||||||||
| Garrison | United States Air Force United States Army Air Corps Aerospace Defense Command Strategic Air Command Newfoundland Base Command Air Transport Command Northeast Air Command | ||||||||||
| Occupants | 4081st Strategic Wing 4731st Air Defense Group 6602d Air Base Group 61st Fighter Squadron 347th Engineer Aviation Battalion | ||||||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||||||
| Identifiers | IATA: YJT, ICAO: CYJT | ||||||||||
| Elevation | 80 ft (24 m) AMSL | ||||||||||
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Ernest Harmon Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located in Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador. The base was built by the United States Army Air Forces in 1941 under the Destroyers for Bases Agreement with the United Kingdom.
From its establishment in 1941 until March 31, 1949, the base was located in the Dominion of Newfoundland. On March 31, 1949, the Dominion of Newfoundland was admitted to Canadian Confederation and became the 10th province of Canada. The agreement enabling the base's existence, from 1941 until closure in 1966, enabled it to function as a de facto enclave of United States territory within, first the Dominion of Newfoundland and later Canada, making United States military personnel stationed at the base subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
March 3, 1960, while returning home from his army stint, Elvis Presley landed on Ernest Harmon Air Force Base for a refueling en route from Frankfurt, Germany and Glasgow Prestwick Airport, Prestwick, Scotland to McGuire Airforce Base in Fort Dix, New Jersey, US. Apart from 2 concerts in 1957 Elvis never returned to Canada during his lifetime.
Following its closure in 1966, the base property was relinquished by the Government of the United States to the Government of Canada, under the terms of the original deal. The Government of Canada subsequently transferred the base property to the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, which established the Harmon Corporation to oversee the disposition and use of the base property and facilities.
The airfield is now operated as Stephenville International Airport while many of the base's support buildings and housing have been incorporated into the town of Stephenville.