Reykjavik Airport, the second largest airport in the country (after Keflavik International Airport), is positioned inside the city, just south of the city centre. It is mainly used for domestic flights as well as flights to Greenland and the Faroe Islands. It was built there by the British occupation force during World War II on the outskirts of, then much smaller, Reykjavik. In later years there has been some controversy regarding the location of the airport since it takes up a lot of valuable space in central Reykjavik.The first flight from the airport area was September 3, 1919 with the take off of an Avro 504, the first aeroplane in Iceland [1]. Until 1937 there were experiments with airline operations in Vatnsmyri but with the foundation of Iceland's first airline, Flugfelag Islands in Akureyri in 1938, operations began in the area and in March 1940 scheduled flights started taking off when Flugfelag Islands moved its hub from Akureyri to Reykjavik. On July 6, 1946 the British handed the airport operation over to the Icelandic government and since then it has been operated by the Icelandic Civil Aviation Authority.The city has grown all around it in the following decades and it is now essentially located in the middle of the city. This location is considered inconvenient by some, both for safety reasons and because it takes up a lot of valuable space in a central location.

This central location is also the reason why many wish to keep the airport where it is as it is a vital link between the national capital and the sparsely populated rest of the country. There is an ongoing debate about the future of the airport with the three options being: keeping the airport as it is, building a new one in the Reykjavik area or move the domestic flights to Keflavik International Airport and close the one in Reykjavik. The first choice would make it impossible to develop the highly valued land, the second choice would be most expensive and the third one would hurt the domestic service and reduce access to vital institutions in the capital such as hospitals.

Renovation of the airport started in 2000 and was finished 2 years later, in 2002, with the closure of runway 06/24 which was 3,150 ft (960 m). Following a referendum in 2001 were 49.3% voted to have the airport moved out of the city center while 48.1% voted to have the airport in place until 2016 when the current urban plan expires.Following the renovation of the airport the width of both runways is 45 m with visual approach for runway 01 and 31 while runway 19 has ILS CAT I/NBD-DME approach and runway 13 has LLZ-DME/NDB-DME approach. The lights for the runways were also updated with LIH Wedge for all runways.

Airport Data:

International, Heliport, Reykjavik 1km, Position 64°07'48"N, 021°56'26"W, Elevation 15m (49ft), 24 hours, 1 Passenger Terminal, 1 Cargo Terminal

Airfield Data:

3 Runways, Fire Category 5-7
Emergency Services: yes
Navigational Aids: LLZ/NDB/DME
Noise Restrictions: yes
Aircraft Maintenance: limited
Runway 1: Heading 01/19, 1,567m (5,141ft), 35, ICAO Cat. 3D, ILS, Lighting: LIH, YLZ, GTHR, R SWY/END PAPI 3,50
Runway 2: Heading 13/31, 1,230m (4,035ft), 25, ICAO Cat. 3D, No ILS, Lighting: LLZ, DME, NDB, DME, PAPI 3,00 RNY 13
Runway 3: Heading 06/24, 960m (3,149ft), 15, ILS

Airlines Serving Airport: Ernir Air, Icelandair Cargo, Islandsflug

Cargo Facilities: Bonded Warehouse, Transit Zone, Aircraft Maintenance, Refrigerated Storage, Livestock Handling, X-Ray Equipment, Dangerous Goods, Radioactive Goods

Passenger Facilities:

1 check-in desk, 1 Airport Hotel, Bank, Bureau de Change, Auto Exchange Machine, Restaurants, Cafeterias, Bars, Newsagent/Tobacconist, Gift Shop, Tourist Help Desk, Car Rental, Taxi Service/Rank, Baby/Parent Room

Contacts

Reykjavik Airport, Iceland, 101 Reykjavik
Tel: +354 (0)569 4100
Fax: +354 (0)562 3619
e-mail: fms at caa is
Website: www.caa.is
Managing Director: Jon Baldvin Palsson +354 (0)569 4134
Finance Manager: Sigrun Traustadottir +354 (0)569 4125
Passenger Manager: Anna Dagny Halldorsdottir +354 (0)569 4107
Air Traffic Controller: Helgi Bjornsson
Public Relations Manager: Hjordis +354 (0)569 4128
Security Manager: Arni Birgisson +354 (0)569 4237
Operator: Icelandic Civil Aviation Authority

Images and information placed above are from
http://www.galenfrysinger.com/reykjavik_iceland.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reykjav%C3%ADk
http://www.myndasafn.is/

We thank them for the data!

The content above was published at Airports-Worldwide.com in 2007.
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