In the 1950s, Army research units became interested in building structures inside permanent ice for protection, survival, and concealment.

Close to the Air Force's new base at Thule and within its associated joint Danish-American Defense Area, the Army Corps of Engineers was able to create an extensive infrastructure to try out these ideas.

Initially, from 1952, the Army Transportation Corps participated in cross-icecap supply trains using tracked vehicle convoys, eventually reaching as far as Station Nord on the east coast of Greenland.

At an elevation of 1,500 feet (460 m), Camp Tuto had a 2,000-foot (610 m) runway with a hangar for use by Army liaison and light cargo aircraft.

Along the flag-marked ice route, survival cabins with supply caches were set out at 30 mile intervals, also serving for weather, radio, and search-and-rescue tasks.

At the eastern end of the airstrip, Camp Tuto proper had numerous large aluminum-sandwich buildings, some connected with innovative tunnels for weather protection.

Although initially successful, the ice camps were subject to gradual deformation, compression, and subsidence requiring annual repair and realignment operations.