World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseSaidor Airfield, located on the northern coast of the Territory of New Guinea, was built by the Australians prior to the start of the Pacific War. It had a single runway measured at 750-yard (685-meter) long surfaced with sod. It was captured by the Japanese in early 1942 and was referred to as Gumbi Airfield. It was managed by the Japanese Army during the war, but it did not played a major role in the war, as it was largely reserved for emergencies only. It was captured by US Army troops on 2 Jan 1944, and the US Army would expand the airfield, with its name restored to Saidor, with expanded taxiways, revetments, aprons, and other upgrades. Between Mar and Aug 1944, Saidor hosted several air units, including the headquarters of the newly activated US 309th Bombardment Wing. At the time of this writing in 2017, Saidor Airfield remained in use as a very small civilian regional airport.

Saidor Airfield Timeline