In 1945, the Royal Engineers constructed an airfield on the West Island, and 21,900 coconut trees were chopped to make way. The land at th time was owned by the Clunies-Ross family, who claimed £87,600 in compensation. Two steel-plated airstrips were built, and three bomber squadrons were moved to the islands to conduct raids against Japanese targets in Southeast Asia and to provide support during the planned re-invasion of Malaya and reconquest of Singapore. The first aircraft to arrive were Supermarine Spitfire Mk VIIIs of No. 136 Squadron RAF. They included some B-24 Liberator bombers from No. 321 (Netherlands) Squadron RAF (members of exiled Dutch forces serving with the Royal Air Force), which were also stationed on the islands. Qantas Empire Airways utilised the airport as a stopover to relink Perth and Ceylon, with its Avro Lancastrians frequenting to refuel. On 25 May 1950, a Qantas Catalina left Rose Bay for the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, carrying a survey team comprising members of the Department of Civil Aviation, RAAF, Qantas, and a hydrographer from the Royal Australian Navy. By then, the steel-plated runways had corroded, although samples concluded that locally sourced crushed coral can be used to construct a runway. In August 1951, a ship was chartered to carry a party of the 2nd Airfield Construction Squadron and 4,000 tons of heavy works equipment. In March 1952, construction commenced for a 10,000 feet long and 150 feet wide runway. Up to 570 personnel from the 2nd Airfield Construction Squadron were deployed to facilitate this, using the recommended crushed coral for the runway. On 2 July 1952, construction works were completed, with both ends of the runway sealed and a capability of handling Lockheed Constellation aircraft. In September 1952, Qantas began a service between Australia and South Africa. South African Airways aircraft operated between Johannesburg and Perth refuelled at this airport en-route before 1970. The 2016 Australian Defence White Paper stated that the airfield would be upgraded to support the RAAF's P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft. Work was scheduled to begin in early 2023 and completed by 2026, though the costs of the upgrade had increased significantly. It is planned that the airfield will act as a forward operating base for Australian surveillance and electronic warfare aircraft in the region.