In 1939 Ascension became important as a high-frequency direction finding radio station covering trade routes.[4] Wideawake Airfield (named after a noisy colony of sooty terns nearby) was built by the US military in 1942 by arrangement with the British government. The airfield was built using a US task force.[5] The work was done by the USAAF 38th Engineer Combat Regiment and the airfield opened on 10 July 1942.[6] The first aircraft to land on Ascension Island was a Fairey Swordfish from HMS Archer in June, 1942 and it went on to be used by more than 25,000 aircraft as a staging point during the Second World War.[7]