 In 1954, the Military Experimental Engineering Establishment from Christchurch laid a Tarmac runway on the site of the World War II wire and steel runway.The main beneficiaries of this exercise was the De Havilland factory which was producing Vampire, Venom, Sea Venom and Sea Vixen jet fighters and Airspeed Ambassador twin piston-engined airliners.Following the closure of De Havilland factory in 1962, the use of the airfield rapidly declined.