Are we in the British Empire (or Commonwealth)?

Cocos (Keeling) Islands?

Gne

Not in The British Commonwealth or former Empire

West Indies?

No not West Indies

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....c5d0cb87c.jpeg
It used to have a town and a named airstrip

"It used to have a town and a named airstrip"

So they've disappeared? Lets assume it wasn't a tsunami or similar but that we're looking at a temporary military base somewhere. Indian Ocean?

Lyrics to `More and More`,by Joe Dolan might help......

Never knew we had a Joe Dolan fan amongst us!

He certainly had a voice....

Sycamore takes us to Joe Dolan's epic - in which the only words of any use are Monday Monday which might take us to Thursday Island in the Torres Straits which might take us to nearby Horn Island which was a WW2 base

Or maybe I've taken a wrong turning.

A56,dunno where you get the `Monday,Monday` bit from,but East(ish) might get you closer to the `theme`......

Well, it's amazing what you learn from PPRuNe. I had never heard of Joe Dolan. After going through the lyrics of More and More, fruitlessly looking for clues, I am not tempted to listen to him. Richard Thompson is much more my style. :E

I dunno what link there should be found in the lyrics of More and more but perhaps Syca refers to the album with the song Make me an island?

The airstrip(s?) are not recognizable anymore and this what is left of the civil town of 7 wooden huts:

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....32a69b501.jpeg

Not Indian Ocean
We are about midway but between what?

Mid Pacific?

Midway!

Yes to mid pacific but not Midway itself

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....8c87ab155.jpeg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....f5ca108c9.jpeg

Sycamore, are you going to prove you actually knew it already?
or is the final clue for everybody else:
The light tower day beacon has been named after a famous aviatrix.

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....52d9a244b.jpeg

SLB,knowing you are as devious as A -56,the USA flag pointed to Pacific,Governed territory.then scout for US Lighthouses,which gave Baker Island,35 miles S of Howland.Joe Dolan was looking for a `Woman`(aren`t we all) who`d disappeared...I had recently had on my cluttered desk an analysis done by ChrisBillings of his searches done inPNG,,of an unknown Electra found in a forest by Australian troops,which may have that it was possible for it to be the one that had disappeared...Tentative Irish connection was the navigator had Irish parents....

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....72531258b1.jpg
something for Sycamore!

Sycamore has it with Howland Island.

Itascatown (seven huts) of which one Government house. 1935 till 1942

Total of 3 graded airstrips Kamawaiki airport as midway stop for future air routes between Australia and Hawaii.

The beacon tower is named after the most famous non-visitor Amelia Earhart.

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....7a0e3f423.jpeg