Airports of the World: Reykjavik
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland is the Northern most capital city in the world. The city was founded in 1786 as an official trading town. Today, Reykjavik is home to just over 200 000 people. Located at 64°07′48″N - only 2 degrees south of the Arctic Circle, the city has 20 hour days in summer and four hour days in the depth of winter. (By contrast Boston is at 42° 21′ 28″ N, Montreal is at 45° 30' 0 N, and Edinburgh is 55° 56′ 58.4″ N)
Two airports serve the Capital:The first is Reykjavíkurflugvöllur (Reykjavik airport) IATA Code: RKV. The airport is located 2km from downtown. Originally this airport was built by the British military during World War II, In 1946, the British handed the airport operation over to the Icelandic government.
Churches, offices, houses and shops are close by the runways and planes seem to brush the rooftops as they come in.
Downtown Reykjavik |
The airport serves mostly domestic flights plus flights to nearby Greenland (run by Flugfelag Islands). Pictured below is my mate Paul heading off to the town of Akureyri The capital of north Iceland located at 64.33°N.
I have a video which will prove I AM a complete geek. It is of an icelandair 757 taking off from Reykjavik Airport for an airshow. The runway is 1,567metres (5,141feet) long so takeoff is tight which makes it exciting!
The other airport is Keflavík International Airport (IATA: KEF) which was built by the by the United States military in 1942 for heavy bombers. The airport maintained a military designation until the 1980s as a key part of US Cold war readiness. Passengers from the 1950s to the 1980s actually had to go through a military base to get to flights! This airport is 50km from downtown.
Travel between Keflavik and Reykjavik |
The main airlines are Iceland Air and Iceland Express. with flights connecting the USA and Europe to Keflavík.
A handy flight bus connects to to the (small) main bus terminal in Reykjavik from where connecting mini buses will take you to your hotel.
Iceland is an amazing wonderful unique place! My holiday there in August, 2009 was one of the best in my life. There are some great stopover packages between the two and with the Icelandic currency so low, now is a great time to go.
I recommend the hotel Room with a View.
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