Keflavík Airport

KEF originated during WWII, as it was built by the US military to replace a small British landing strip at Garõur to the north. It consisted of two separate two-runway airfields, Patterson Field to the southeast and Meeks Field to the northwest (both fields were named after pilots who had perished in Iceland). Although Patterson Field was closed after the culmination of the war, Meeks Field was returned to Icelandic control and renamed Naval Air Station Keflavík. The US military returned to the airfield in 1951 following a defense agreement (the NATO-sponsored Iceland-U.S. Defense Agreement). Despite the fact that the agreement was controversial in Iceland and protests were held every year during the 1060s and 1970s, it remained in place. As the terminal building was in the middle of a secure military zone, passengers had to go through military checkpoints to reach their flights. This situation was alleviated in April 1987 with the opening of a new terminal building. The terminal was expanded in 2001 with a South Building, erected to comply with the Schengen Agreement. The US military base closed in 2006, and the North Building of the terminal was enlarged the following year. The terminal underwent another expansion in 2016, adding seven gates. KEF had been a hub for WOW, which ended when the airline ceased operation on March 28th, 2019.

The airport is 1.9 miles west of Keflavik and 30 miles southwest of Reykjavik. 

• The terminal building is named for Leif Erikson, known as the first European to reach North America. 
• The runway at KEF is utilized as an emergency landing runway for large aircraft in transatlantic operation in the ETOPS system, which requires aircraft to have less than a certain flight time from a suitable landing site. 
• Plans are in place for the construction of a third runway. 
• The FBOs at KEF are Iceland Jet Center, South Air, ACE FBO, and Universal Aviation.