CFB Goose Bay also serves as a forward operating location for RCAF CF-18 Hornet aircraft and the base and surrounding area is occasionally used to support units of the Canadian Army during training exercises.

"[5] Under pressure from Britain and the United States the Canadian Air Ministry worked at a record pace, and by November, three 2,100-metre (7,000 ft) gravel runways were ready.

In time, the USAAF and the British Royal Air Force (RAF) each developed sections of the triangular base for their own use, but the airport remained under overall Canadian control despite its location in the Dominion of Newfoundland, not yet a part of Canada.

The field was listed as "all hard-surfaced" and had three runways listed as follows:[8] The northeast side of the facility was built to be a temporary RCAF base, complete with its own hangars and control tower, while the south side of the facility, built for the Americans, was being upgraded with its own aprons, hangars, earth-covered magazines, control tower and infrastructure.

It was later home to permanent detachments of the RAF, Luftwaffe, Aeronautica Militare, and Royal Netherlands Air Force, in addition to temporary deployments from several other NATO countries.

[3] The value of the airfield and facilities built and improved by the USAF since 1953 and transferred to Canada were estimated in excess of US$250 million[citation needed] (equivalent to $1.3 billion today).

In response to lessons learned from the Vietnam War and the growing sophistication of Soviet anti-aircraft radar and surface-to-air missile technology being deployed in Europe, NATO allies began looking at new doctrines in the 1970s–1980s which mandated low-level flight to evade detection.

[citation needed] The increased low-level flights by fighter aircraft was not without serious controversy as the Innu Nation protested these operations vociferously, claiming[example needed] that the noise of aircraft travelling at supersonic speeds in close proximity to the ground was adversely affecting wildlife, namely caribou, and was a nuisance to their way of life on their traditional lands.

[citation needed] Goose Bay was an attractive training facility for these air forces in light of the high population concentration in their countries, as well as numerous laws preventing low-level flying.

[21][22] On 11 September 2001, CFB Goose Bay hosted seven trans-Atlantic commercial airliners which were diverted to land as part of Operation Yellow Ribbon, following the closure of North American airspace as a result of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C.

[23][needs update] The base continues in its role as a low-level tactical training facility and as a forward deployment location for the RCAF, although the total complement of Canadian Forces personnel numbers less than 100.

[citation needed] Labradorian politicians such as former Liberal Senator Bill Rompkey have advocated using CFB Goose Bay as a site for a missile defence radar system being developed by the United States Department of Defense.

Executives from defence contractor Raytheon have surveyed CFB Goose Bay as a suitable location for deploying such a radar installation.

An increasing number of airliners (especially mid-range aircraft like the Boeing 757) have resorted to using Goose Bay for unplanned fuel stops, especially common for trans-Atlantic flights impacted by a seasonally strong jet stream over the North Atlantic.

[30][31] By 1962, Trans-Canada was serving Goose Bay with nonstop flights twice a week from Montreal Dorval operated with Vickers Vanguard turboprop aircraft.

[32] In 1981, Eastern Provincial Airways was the only airline serving Goose Bay with nonstop Boeing 737-200 jet service from Churchill Falls, Deer Lake, Halifax, Montreal Dorval, St. John's, Stephenville and Wabush although none of these flights were operated on a daily basis.

As a result, both the soil and groundwater of the site have been contaminated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, heavy metals, and polychlorinated biphenyls, among other hazardous substances.

[41] In 2004 the groundwater pollution of the surrounding area had progressed to an extent that the Department of National Defence warned local farmers to avoid using wellwater until further testing was done.