Isavia press-release
On Saturday, July 3, 10,580 people passed through Keflavík Airport. So many passengers have not passed through the airport in one day since March 13, 2020, or just over 15 months ago. The next day, or March 14, 2020, the US authorities imposed a travel ban on the United States due to COVID-19 which reduced the number of passengers at Keflavík Airport significantly the following week. As of March 23, there was very little traffic at the airport and the connection between Europe and North America was closed. The ban is still in force and it is uncertain when it will be lifted. However, there has been a change in the fact that fully vaccinated Americans or those who have been infected with Covid-19 can come to Iceland without border restrictions.
In addition to the increase in tourists that have taken place in recent weeks, it is clear that at least 20 airlines will have flights to and from Keflavík Airport this summer. Most recently, the airline Play joined the group. Icelandair has also increased the number of departures every week and the American airline United Airlines started flights to Chicago last week. It is a new destination for United from Keflavík Airport.
“There are brighter times ahead in the operation of airports and airlines after difficult times due to the pandemic,” says Guðmundur Daði Rúnarsson, Director of Business and Development at Isavia. “The successful share offering of Play and a new core investor at Icelandair show that the market has great faith in flights to Iceland and the country as a destination now that vaccinations have eased the pandemic. “
Guðmundur Daði says that it is important to keep in mind that the next few days can be very busy and processing is slow at the airport, while the current disease control measures of the health authorities are followed towards arriving passengers at Leif Eiríksson Airport.
“In addition to this, it can be mentioned that it is very important for the development in the coming winter how the aviation operations and services to tourists in Iceland succeed in July and August,” says Guðmundur Daði. “We at Isavia work a lot with airlines to ensure an increased supply of flights during the winter. The interest in Iceland is great and with each new company and each new destination, the number of people who want to visit us increases and the opportunities for the Icelandic business community to enter new markets increases even more. “
