Honiara International Airport Honiara International Airport Honiara International Airport , formerly known as Henderson Field, is an airport on Guadalcanal Island in the nation of Solomon Islands. It is the only international airport in the country and is located from the capital Honiara. In 1942 the airfield was under construction by the Imperial Japanese Navy when captured by American forces, who went on to complete it. Control of the airstrip was the focus of months of fighting in the Battle for Henderson Field during the Guadalcanal campaign of World War II. Henderson Field was named for Marine Major Lofton Henderson, commanding officer of
Honiara in the town, conducting surveys all across the islands and investigating leprosy. He departed and returned to Fiji in late March 1955. The town grew significantly after Honiara became the capital city, receiving two-thirds of the allocations granted for the country's economic development in the 1960s and 1970s, resulting in substantial infrastructure development. Population growth was very slow and only about 5% of Solomon Islanders were living in the city. However, the Bellonese population significantly increased; they established permanent and semi-permanent houses in the Honiara vicinity, typically along the banks of the White River. The town was affected by creolisation.