Keflavík International Airport
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| Keflavik International Airport Keflavíkurflugvöllur |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| IATA: KEF - ICAO: BIKF | |||
| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Public | ||
| Operator | Civil Aviation Administration | ||
| Serves | Reykjavík | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 171 ft (52 m) | ||
| Coordinates | |||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| ft | m | ||
| 02/20 | 10,020 | 3,054 | Asphalt |
| 11/29 | 10,057 | 3,065 | Asphalt |
Keflavík International Airport (Icelandic: Keflavíkurflugvöllur) (IATA: KEF, ICAO: BIKF) - the largest airport in Iceland and the country's main hub for international transportation. It is situated near the town of Keflavík, about 50 km (about 31 miles) from Reykjavík. The airport has two runways, one 3065 m × 60 m and one 3054 m × 60 m. The airport area is about 25 square kilometers.
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[edit] History
The airport was built by the United States Army during World War II. As early as December 1941 the U.S. Army Air Forces desired an airfield at Keflavik capable of operating heavy bombers in addition to a fighter strip. Funds were allocated in January 1942 and construction begun 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 strip, known as Meeks Field, was begun in July by military and civilian contractor crews, but the civilian contractor was relieved by the newly formed U.S. Navy construction battalions Seabees and opened on March 23, 1943.
During the war the airport complex only served military purposes, but soon after the war it became a popular refueling airport for planes crossing the Atlantic. After withdrawal in 1947, U.S. forces came back to Keflavík in 1951 and, due to its strategic location, continued using the airport until October 2006. In fact, the airport is still partially funded by American tax dollars, although the Icelandic government is increasing its share little by little.
With the re-construction of the military base at Keflavik during the 1950's, the civilian terminal ended up in the middle of the base. International travellers thus had to enter military check points to reach their flights until 1987 when the civilian terminal was relocated. Needless to say, this was unpopular with some Icelanders. The U.S. government has now withdrawn its forces from Keflavík, against the will of the Icelandic government. On September 30th 2006 the U.S. government officially handed the airport operation and naval air station over to the Icelandic government.
[edit] Leifur Eiríksson Air Terminal
Keflavík International Airport has one terminal called Leifur Eiríksson Air Terminal (Flugstöð Leifs Eiríkssonar or Leifsstöð in Icelandic), named for Leif Ericson. It was opened in 1987 and thereby separated the airport's civil traffic from its military activities. 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 is currently being enlarged and is scheduled to be ready in 2007. The terminal is one of few in the world to have Duty-Free stores in both departure and arrival lounges.
Although the population of Iceland is only about 300,000, there are scheduled flights to and from 6 locations in the United States (San Francisco, New York, Boston, Baltimore, Orlando and Minneapolis) and 20 cities across Europe. It should be noted that Keflavík Airport only serves international flights: domestic flights and flights to Greenland and the Faroe Islands are operated from Reykjavík domestic airport. The main carriers are Icelandair and Iceland Express.
[edit] Controversy
During the 1960s and 1970s, many rallies were held to protest the U.S. presence in Iceland (and in particular in Keflavík) and every year hundreds, sometimes thousands, walked the 50 km road to Keflavík and chanted "Ísland úr NATO, herinn burt" (literally: Iceland out of NATO, the military away). One of the better known participants was Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, who later became the first female president of Iceland.
[edit] Facts
- Passengers going through the airport (2005): 1,816,905
- Cargo through the airport (2005): 57,157 tons
[edit] Airlines and destinations
- British Airways (London-Gatwick)
- Futura International Airways (Palma de Mallorca, Tenerife-South, Málaga, Gran Canaria, Dublin)
- Iceland Express (Alicante, Berlin-Schönefeld, Copenhagen, Friedrichshafen, Gothenburg-Landvetter, Frankfurt-Hahn, London-Stansted, Stockholm-Arlanda)
- Icelandair (Amsterdam, Baltimore/Washington, Barcelona, Bergen [starts summer 2007], Berlin-Schönefeld, Boston, Copenhagen, Frankfurt-Main, Glasgow, Gothenburg-Landsvetter [starts summer 2007], Halifax [starts spring 2007], Helsinki, London-Heathrow, Madrid, Manchester, Milan-Malpensa, Minneapolis/St Paul, New York-JFK, Orlando-Sanford, Oslo, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, San Francisco, Stockholm-Arlanda)
- Scandinavian Airlines System (Stockholm-Arlanda [starts 2007-04-27])
- SAS Braathens (Oslo)
- Travel Service (Prague, Brno, Karlovy Vary, Ostrava, Pardubice, Budapest)
