The Saint John Airport's first manager, Bill Arrowsmith, kept a scrap book of the airport during its first years of operation.

That scrap book was recently loaned to the airport by Mr. Arrowsmith's wife. We've preserved it in digital format here, on our site.

The Bill Arrowsmith Scrap Book (2 Meg DjVu file)

Opening Ceremonies Invitation and Guide (DjVu file)

Additional Airport Clippings (DjVu file)

To view the above documents, you will require a small plug-in from LizardTech, please click here to download.

Birth of The Saint John Airport

The Department of Transport agreed to construct a new airport which would be operated and maintained by The City of Saint John. The agreement was signed on March 20, 1950, but the actual construction began in March 1949. One year later runway 05-23 was completed measuring 5500 feet long and 200 feet wide. Soon after, runway 14-32 was completed measuring 5100 feet long.

The first aircraft to land was actually during construction on runway 05-23. Pilot James Wade landed his Cessna plane on a rough gravel surface. His passengers included Senator Riley and V.I.P.'S. In February of 1950, the first night landing was made by the RCAF Dakota. The actual first scheduled flight to the new Saint John Airport was a Maritime Central Airways DC-3 piloted by Captain Jones of Apohaqui, N.B. on August 11, 1951.

The terminal building started construction in 1951 and a mobile ticket unit was used during construction. The official opening of the airport was the same day the Air Terminal Building was opened, January 8, 1952. The facility came to be known as the Turnbull Airfield. Mr. W.R. Turnbull of Rothesay, N.B. was a pioneer in the aeronautical research and invention fields.

"Wallace Rupert Turnbull" was born in Saint John , studied engineering at Cornell and Heidelberg, and in 1901 established his own business in Rothesay as a consulting engineer. In order to conduct his extensive aeronautical research, Turnbull built a wind tunnel - the first in Canada - in his own workshop.

His research eventually led him to invent the first practical variable-pitch propeller in the world. The variable-pitch propeller was a significant development, as it allowed for in-flight adjustments of the propeller blades to the different angles required for efficient take-off, climbing, cruising, and landing.

Click here to view a Historic Slideshow of the Saint John Airport - photos provided by Vintage Photo & Frame