Border Beacon Airstrip

Military Decommissioning. The airstrip was built to serve the Border Beacon Sector Control Station (Site 200) of the Mid-Canada Line (MCL), a Cold War-era radar fence. The entire MCL system was declared obsolete by the mid-1960s due to the advent of more advanced radar systems (like the DEW Line and Pinetree Line) and the shift in strategic threat from bombers to Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs). When the radar line was decommissioned and abandoned around 1965, the airstrip lost its sole purpose and was closed along with the station.

The site is abandoned and derelict. Satellite imagery confirms the presence of the gravel runway, which remains clearly visible but is unmaintained and slowly being reclaimed by nature. Any navigational aids have been removed, and the runway surface is likely unsafe for aircraft. The buildings and structures of the associated radar station are in ruins or were demolished during environmental remediation efforts undertaken by the Department of National Defence to clean up hazardous materials (like PCBs and fuel) left behind at these remote Cold War sites. The area is uninhabited and the site is not used for any purpose.

Border Beacon Airstrip was an integral component of North American air defense during the Cold War. Its primary and only function was to support the construction and operation of the Border Beacon radar station, one of the main Sector Control Stations of the Mid-Canada Line. Constructed in the mid-1950s, the MCL was designed to detect low-flying Soviet bombers. Due to the site's extreme remoteness in the Labrador wilderness with no road access, the gravel airstrip was critical for flying in heavy construction equipment, building materials, electronics, fuel, supplies, and personnel. During its operational years (c. 1957-1965), it handled regular supply flights, primarily by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), using rugged aircraft capable of landing on short, unimproved strips, such as the de Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou and the Douglas C-47 Dakota.

There are no plans or realistic prospects for reopening the Border Beacon Airstrip. The airstrip served a highly specific, single military purpose that has been defunct for over 50 years. Its location is exceptionally remote, with no nearby communities, industry, or tourism that would justify the immense cost of restoring, certifying, and maintaining an airfield. The site is inaccessible by land and has no modern economic or logistical value.