Keflavík International Airport (Icelandic: Keflavíkurflugvöllur) (IATA: KEF, ICAO: BIKF), also known as Reykjavík-Keflavík Airport, is the largest airport in Iceland and the countrys main hub for international transportation. It is situated 1.7 NM (3.1 km; 2.0 mi) west of Keflavík^[1] and 50 km (31 mi) south-west of Reykjavík. The airport has two runways and the airport area is about 25 km² (9.7 sq mi). Most international journeys to or from Iceland pass through this airport.

The main carriers at Keflavík are Icelandair and Iceland Express, who make the airport their main hub. The airport is only an international airport, all domestic flights are flown from Reykjavík Airport, which lies within 3 km (1.9 mi) from Reykjavíks city centre. Keflavík Airport is operated by Isavia, a government enterprise.

History

Airport history

The airport was built by the United States military during World War II. The U.S. Army Air Forces desired an airfield at Keflavík capable of operating heavy bombers, in addition to a fighter strip. Funds were allocated in January 1942 and construction began on the fighter strip (known as Patterson Field) in May. Two runways of the fighter field were in use by July when Operation Bolero commenced. The bomber field, known as Meeks Field, was begun in July by military and civilian contractor crews, but the civilian contractor was soon relieved by the newly formed U.S. Navy construction battalions Seabees. Meek Field was dedicated on 23 March 1943 and by May stopover service for transatlantic military flights was in operation.

During the war the airport complex only served military purposes, but at war's end it became a refueling stop for the quickly developing international civil aviation crossing the Atlantic. At the withdrawal of U.S. forces in 1947, the airport was handed over to Iceland and renamed Keflavík Airport. The Airport was operated jointly by Iceland and the United States for transiting civil and military flights. U.S. forces returned to Keflavík in 1951 under the auspices of NATO and joint operation continued until 30 September 2006, when the military installation was handed over to the government of Iceland.

With the re-construction of the military base at Keflavík during the 1950s, the air terminal found itself positioned in the middle of the base. International travelers thus had to enter military check points to reach their flights for most of the time, which gave the feeling that the U.S. military controlled access to and from Iceland. This continued until 1987 when the civilian terminal was relocated. The former Agreed Military Area at Keflavík was re-designated "Airport, Security and Development Area" under the supervision of the Keflavík International Airport Ltd. (established 1 January 2009), the Icelandic Defence Agency and the Keflavík Airport Development Corporation (Kadeco), respectively. The former military encampment area (U.S. Naval Air Station Keflavik) being developed by Kadeco has been named Ásbrú to reflect its new role.

The 10,000-foot-long (3,000 m) and 200-foot-wide (61 m) runways are long enough to support NASA's Space Shuttle and also the Antonov An-225.

Terminal

The Airport has one terminal named Leifur Eiríksson Air Terminal (Flugstöð Leifs Eiríkssonar), named for Leif Ericson. It was opened the 6th of April 1987 and separated the airport's civil traffic from the military base. It was later extended with the opening of the South Building in 2001 (not a separate terminal) to comply with the requirements of the Schengen Agreement. The North Building was later enlarged and finished in 2007. The terminal has duty-free stores in the departure and arrival lounges.

Airlines and destinations

Although the population of Iceland is only about 300,000, there are scheduled flights to and from seven locations in the United States (Boston, Chicago, Minneapolis, New York, Orlando, Seattle, and Washington), three in Canada (Halifax, Toronto and Winnipeg) and 30 cities across Europe. The largest carriers at Keflavík are Icelandair and Iceland Express.

Keflavík Airport only handles international flights (except for flights to Akureyri in connection with certain Air Icelands flights to Greenland), domestic flights and flights to Greenland and the Faroe Islands are operated from Reykjavíks domestic airport. When changing between domestic and international flights, a 50 km (31 mi) bus transfer is usually needed, and at least three hours time between flights is recommended.

Cargo airlines

Ground transport

Transport between the airport and Reykjavik city is by road only. The distance is 50 km. A new fast freeway (dual carriageway road) was opened 2008. The buses have a timetable adapted to the flight schedule. They go to and from the Reykjavik bus terminal, taking around 45 minutes. To get to the domestic airport a bus change is needed at the bus terminal.

Controversy

The presence of foreign military forces in Iceland under the NATO sponsored IcelandU.S. Defense Agreement of 1951 was a controversial issue in Iceland which had no indigenous military forces. During the 1960s and 1970s, rallies were held to protest the U.S. military presence in Iceland (and in particular at Keflavík) and every year protesters walked the 50 km (31 mi) road from Reykjavík to Keflavík and chanted "Ísland úr NATO, herinn burt" (literally: Iceland out of NATO, the military away). One of the participants was Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, who later became the first female President of Iceland.

References

External links

• Keflavík International Airport
• Keflavík International Airport (Icelandic)
• KADECO
• The Icelandic Defence Agency
• Current aviation weather for Keflavík