Iconic Gander airport lounge aims to reopen as hub for community, tourists

Gander is known for opening its arms to strandedpassengers in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, but the central Newfoundland town's history has been linked to aviation since long before the planes were rerouted to its airportalmost 20 years ago.

Reg Wright, president and CEO of the airport, says the "glamourof aviation really coloured what the community was."

"It's not the warm centre of the universe, Gander isn't, but italways did have that sort of a glittering constellation of starsthat were coming through, and people from all over," says Wright.

No space represents that legacy better than the airport'sinternational lounge, opened by the Queen in 1959. After beingsealed off from the public for decades, the lounge which Wrightcalls a "time capsule" is set to reopen this year.

It's considered one of Canada's best-preserved examples ofmodernist architecture. Bright orange and yellow seating overlook astunning lower level that features an expansive mural, "Flight andIts Allegories," by Canadian painter Kenneth Lochhead and a sculpture, "Welcoming Birds," by Arthur Price.

At the lower level's airport bar, locals used to congregate inhopes of a chance encounter with a Hollywood star or other luminary. That was when planes would stop to refuel in Gander, a convenientmid-way point for transatlantic flights a relatively new luxury inthe mid-20th century.

New tourists visiting

That changed when security measures tightened in the late 1970sand the lounge was closed off. History buffs feared the space couldbe lost due to the high cost of preserving it, but those fears haveabated amid a recent wave of tourism.

Wright estimates more than 200 bus tours and even more sologuests visited the airport this year to see the legendary lounge more guests than staff can accommodate, on top of running anairport.

"I thought it would be better that we fling the doors open, letpeople enjoy the space and learn about Gander's stories, rather thankeeping it behind the seal," Wright said.

A $1.5 million restoration project was announced last year, withthe airport authority putting up $500,000 and another $1 millionsplit between the provincial and federal governments.

Wright attributes the recent interest in the space to popculture, pointing to the success of the Broadway musical Come FromAway, set in the days after 9/11 in Gander, as well as a renewedinterest in modern design aesthetics from fans of the 1950s-set drama Mad Men.

Travellers with an eye for architecture and design also pop inafter visiting the famous Fogo Island Inn, a few hours north of thetown.

Admission will be free, Wright said, with the hope of eventuallylicensing some local guides. The room will be left mostly as-is,with some fresh paint and interpretive materials like storyboards tohelp people guide themselves through the space. There are also plansfor a small theatre to screen films.

An ambitious June opening date has been set, and Wright hopes tohave at least some of the touch-ups ready for the summer tourseason.

It's not expected to be a huge money-maker for the airport, butWright is hopeful the reopening can introduce younger generations tothe airport lounge as a place for the community and its visitors togather.

"It's always been a hub for the local community, and a conduitto the international world," Wright said. "We can do that again,which is pretty exciting."

Memories of the lounge

Peter Blackie grew up in Gander, witnessing the many changes asthe small forest town grew around the aviation industry. Heremembers waving to the Queen as she drove through Gander in 1959,the year he worked a summer job at the airport.

"It was kind of a magic place for most of my life," Blackie said of the lounge he saw open to the world that summer.

"All of asudden we came from World War Two terminal buildings into thisrather fancy, gorgeous facility."

Dean Cull, another Gander native who works with the GanderAirport Historical Society, started working out of the internationallounge as an airline dispatcher in the 1980s. His job put him incontact with some high flyers: Tom Cruise became a weekly guest inhis office when he was flying back and forth to Ireland shooting afilm in the 1990s.

Such interactions with celebrities, generals and politicalleaders became part of a day on the job for Cull, but his strongestmemories come from meeting crew members and passengers from aroundthe world.

He was working during a time when the airport was better knownfor its frequent defections rather than brushes with celebrities.

Some local residents called the airport the "hole in the IronCurtain" for the hundreds of refugee claimants, mostly from EasternEurope, who de-planed at Gander and told officials they wished tostay in Canada.

We just want to open it up to the people again.- Dean Cull

Cull remembers seeing Kim Phuc, a Vietnamese woman who wasfamously photographed as a child fleeing a napalm attack during theVietnam War, who claimed asylum in Canada during a stop in Gander.

One of Cull's favourite features in the lounge speaks to thehistory of everyday people passing through the space: the top ofArthur Price's "Welcoming Birds" statue, worn down by passengerswho touched the artwork for good luck.

"You'll notice that the top of the birds are actually smoothbecause of so many people over years actually rubbing the statue,"he said.

Cull hopes the reopening shares some of the airport's hiddenstories and invites community members back into the space heremembers enjoying as a kid.

"We just want to open it up to the to the people again," he said.

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