Keflavík International Airport (Icelandic: Keflavíkurflugvöllur) (IATA: KEF, ICAO: BIKF) is the largest airport in Iceland and the country’s main hub for international transportation. For the Greater Reykjavík Area see the Greater Reykjavík Area. Keflavík (pronounced /ˈkɛplɑˌviːk/) is a town in the Reykjanes region in southwest Iceland. The term above mean sea level ( AMSL) refers to the Elevation (on the ground or Altitude (in the Air) of any object relative to the The metre or meter is a unit of Length. It is the basic unit of Length in the Metric system and in the International A foot (plural feet or foot; symbol or abbreviation ft or sometimes &prime – the prime symbol) is a non-SI unit A geographic coordinate system enables every location on the Earth to be specified in three coordinates using mainly a spherical coordinate system. A runway ( RWY) is a strip of land on an Airport, on which Aircraft can take off and land. A runway ( RWY) is a strip of land on an Airport, on which Aircraft can take off and land. The metre or meter is a unit of Length. It is the basic unit of Length in the Metric system and in the International A foot (plural feet or foot; symbol or abbreviation ft or sometimes &prime – the prime symbol) is a non-SI unit Asphalt ( is a sticky black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude Petroleums and in some natural deposits sometimes termed asphaltum Icelandic ( is a North Germanic language, the language of Iceland. An IATA airport code, also known an IATA location identifier, IATA station code or simply a location identifier, is a three-letter code designating many The ICAO (ˌaɪˌkeɪˈoʊ Airport code or location indicator is a four-letter Alphanumeric Code designating each airport around An airport is a location where Aircraft such as airplanes, Helicopters and blimps take off and land Iceland, officially the Republic of Iceland ( ( Ísland or Lýðveldið Ísland ( An airline hub is an Airport that an airline uses as a transfer point to get passengers to their intended destination It is situated near the town of Keflavík, about 50 km (about 31 miles) from Reykjavík. Keflavík (pronounced /ˈkɛplɑˌviːk/) is a town in the Reykjanes region in southwest Iceland. The kilometre ( American spelling: kilometer) symbol km is a unit of Length in the Metric system, equal to one thousand A mile is a unit of Length, usually used to measure Distance, in a number of different systems including Imperial units United States For the Greater Reykjavík Area see the Greater Reykjavík Area. The airport has two runways, one 3065 m × 60 m and one 3054 m × 60 m. The metre or meter is a unit of Length. It is the basic unit of Length in the Metric system and in the International The airport area is about 25 square kilometers. Square Kilometre ( US spelling square kilometer) symbol km2, is a decimal multiple of the SI unit of

The main carriers at Keflavík are Icelandair and Iceland Express, both of which make the airport their main hub. Icelandair is the Flag carrier Airline of Iceland, based in Reykjavík. Iceland Express is a low-fare airline based in Reykjavík, Iceland. The airport is only an international airport, except for summer flights to Akureyri in connection with Icelandair’s flights; all other domestic flights are flown from Reykjavík Airport, which lies within a long walk of Reykjavík’s city centre. Akureyri ( is a town in the northern part of Iceland; it is the second largest urban area after Greater Reykjavík area but is the fourth Reykjavík Airport ( Icelandic: Reykjavíkurflugvöllur, is the chiefly domestic airport serving Reykjavík, Iceland. For the Greater Reykjavík Area see the Greater Reykjavík Area. Keflavík International Airport is operated by Leifur Eiriksson Air Terminal Ltd. , a government enterprise.

History

Airport history

An Icelandair Boeing 757-200 serviced at the gate at Keflavík

The airport was built by the United States Army during World War II. Icelandair is the Flag carrier Airline of Iceland, based in Reykjavík. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The United States Army is a military organization whose primary mission is to "provide necessary forces and capabilities. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including 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. The United States Army Air Forces ( USAAF) was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II. 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. Operation Bolero was the commonly used reference for the code name of the United States military troop buildup in Great Britain during World War II in preparation 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. The Seabees are the Construction Battalions of the United States Navy. Events 1174 - Jocelin, Abbot of Melrose, is elected Bishop of Glasgow. Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

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. Transatlantic flight is the flight of an Aircraft, whether Fixed-wing aircraft, Balloon or other device which involves crossing the Atlantic Ocean After withdrawal in 1947, U. S. forces came back to Keflavík in 1951 and, due to its strategic location, continued using the airport until September 30, 2006, when the installation was handed over to the Government of Iceland. Events 1399 - Henry IV is proclaimed King of England. 1744 - France and Spain defeat the Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Politics of Iceland takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic Republic, whereby the Prime Minister of Iceland

With the re-construction of the military base at Keflavík during the 1950s, the air terminal ended up in the middle of the base. International travelers thus had to enter military check points to reach their flights, which gave the feeling that the US military controlled access to and from Iceland. This continued until 1987 when the civilian terminal was relocated. Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) The former Agreed Military Area at Keflavík has been redesignated as Airport, Security and Development Area under the supervision of the Keflavík International Airport Authority, the Defence Department of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Keflavík Airport Development Corporation respectively.

The runways are long enough to support NASA's Space Shuttle and also the Airbus A380 (10,000 ft). The National Aeronautics and Space Administration ( NASA, ˈnæsə is an agency of the United States government, responsible for the nation's public space program NASA 's Space Shuttle, officially called the Space Transportation System ( STS) is the Spacecraft currently used by the United States WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout

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. Leif Ericson ( Old Norse: Leifr Eiríksson) (c 970 – c 1020 was a Norse Explorer who was probably the first European to land in It was opened in 1987 and thereby separated the airport’s civil traffic from its military activities. Civil aviation is one of two major categories of flying representing all non- Military aviation, both private and commercial 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 term Schengen Agreement is used for two agreements concluded among European states in 1985 and 1990 which deal with the abolition of systematic Border controls The north building was later enlarged and finished 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 four locations in the United States (New York, Boston, Orlando, and Minneapolis), Halifax and Toronto in Canada, and 20 cities across Europe. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous Orlando is a major City in central Florida, USA and is the County seat of Orange County Florida. See also Halifax Nova Scotia See also Halifax Regional Municipality municipal election 2008 Halifax Regional Municipality is the capital Toronto (təˈrɒntoʊ colloquially pronounced or) is the largest city in Canada and is the provincial capital of Ontario The largest carriers at Keflavik are Icelandair and Iceland Express.

It should be noted that Keflavík Airport only serves international flights (except for flights to Akureyri in connection with Icelandair’s flights): domestic flights and flights to Greenland and the Faroe Islands are operated from the Reykjavík’s domestic airport. Akureyri ( is a town in the northern part of Iceland; it is the second largest urban area after Greater Reykjavík area but is the fourth Greenland (Kalaallit Nunaat meaning "Land of the Greenlanders" Grønland is a self-governing Danish Province located between the The Faroe Islands or Faeroe Islands or simply Faroe(s or Faeroes (Føroyar meaning " Sheep Islands" Færøerne Old Norse Reykjavík Airport ( Icelandic: Reykjavíkurflugvöllur, is the chiefly domestic airport serving Reykjavík, Iceland. When changing between domestic and international flights, a 50 km bus transfer is usually needed, and at least three hours time between flights is recommended.

Airlines and destinations

Destinations with non-stop service from Keflavík (excluding charters)

• airberlin (Düsseldorf, Munich) [begins June 2008]
• Air Iceland (Akureyri, Nuuk)
• Austrian Airlines (Vienna)
• Edelweiss Air (Zurich)
• Futura International Airways (Gran Canaria, Málaga, Palma de Mallorca, Tenerife-South)
• Germanwings (Cologne/Bonn)
• Iceland Express (Alicante, Barcelona, Berlin-Schönefeld, Billund, Copenhagen, Eindhoven, Franfurt-Hahn, Friedrichshafen, Gothenburg-Landvetter, London-Stansted, Luxembourg, Oslo, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Stockholm-Arlanda, Warsaw)
• Icelandair (Amsterdam, Barcelona [seasonal], Bergen, Berlin-Schönefeld, Boston, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Glasgow-International, Gothenburg-Landvetter, Halifax, Helsinki, London-Heathrow, Madrid [seasonal], Manchester, Milan-Malpensa, Minneapolis/St Paul, New York-JFK, Orlando-Sanford, Oslo, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Stockholm-Arlanda, Toronto-Pearson [begins Spring 2008] [1])
• JetX Airlines (Montreal) [seasonal]
• Lufthansa (Hamburg)
• Swiss International Air Lines (Zurich)
• Scandinavian Airlines System (Stockholm-Arlanda, Oslo)

Charters

• Travel Service (Brno, Budapest, Karlovy Vary, Ostrava, Pardubice, Prague)

Cargo Airlines

• UPS
  • operated by Bluebird Cargo (Cork, Cologne/Bonn)

Controversy

During the 1960s and 1970s, many rallies were held to protest the U. Air Iceland or Flugfélag Íslands is a Regional airline based in Reykjavík, Iceland. Austrian Airlines AG is the flag carrier Airline of Austria, headquartered in Vienna. Edelweiss Air AG is a Charter airline based in Zürich, Switzerland. Futura International Airways was an Airline based in Palma de Mallorca, Spain. Germanwings is a low-cost airline based in Cologne, Germany. It operates services to over 66 destinations in Europe. Iceland Express is a low-fare airline based in Reykjavík, Iceland. Icelandair is the Flag carrier Airline of Iceland, based in Reykjavík. JetX Limited is a Charter airline based in Iceland. The airline operates under Icelandic JAR-OPS 1 Air Operator's Certificate number IS-022 issued by the Icelandic Swiss International Air Lines Ltd (short Swiss) is the principal Airline of Switzerland operating scheduled services in Europe and to North America Scandinavian Airlines System ( SAS) is a multi-national Airline for Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and the leading carrier in the Travel Service is an Airline based in the Czech Republic it also has a Low Cost subsidiary Smart Wings. Bluebird Cargo is a Cargo airline based in Reykjavík, Iceland. The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 This article is about the Decade 1970-1979 For the Year 1970 see 1970. S. military presence in Iceland (and in particular at Keflavík) and every year hundreds, sometimes thousands, walked the 50 km road from Reykjavík 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. Vigdís Finnbogadóttir ( (born 15 April 1930) was the fourth president of Iceland, serving from 1980 to 1996 The President of Iceland (forseti Íslands is Iceland 's elected Head of state.

See also

• Reykjavík Airport
• List of the largest airports in the Nordic countries

References

External links

• Keflavík International Airport
• Airport information for BIKF at World Aero Data
• Leifur Eiríksson Air Terminal
• KADECO
• Ministry for Foreign Affairs