Icelandair

In 1919, the story of commercial travel aviation in Iceland began. Icelandair’s roots can be traced back to 1937. It was at this time that Flugfélag Akureyrar, was founded at Akureyri. The company moved their headquarters to Reykjavík. They then changed their name to Flugfélag Íslands. Icelandair would later become the trade name Flugfélag Íslands.

In 1944 three young Icelandic pilots founded Loftleidir, which would become known as Icelandic Airlines. Early on both airlines were concentrating on domestic travel services. But then in 1945, Flugfélag Íslands made its first international flights to Scotland and Denmark. Two years later, Loftleidir introduced international travel services. They also pioneered low fare services across the North-Atlantic a few years later.

It was decided in 1973 to merge Flugfélag Íslands and Loftleidir. They would both be under Flugleidir holding company. In 1979, they decided to use Icelandair as the international trade name. For Icelandic domestic travel services, the name Flugleidir would be used. This company is totally privately owned. There are around 5000 Icelandic shareholders. In Iceland, this is the largest private company. Over 2000 people are employed by the company.

Between 1989 and 1992 Icelandair renewed its fleet. The new fleet had brand new Boeing 737-400 and 757-200 jets. They also had Fokker 50 turboprop aircraft. The majority of their travel fleet is used for scheduled air routes between Iceland and other countries. Some of the other aircraft is leased and serves various destinations.

Icelandair is a member of the International Air Transport Association and the Flight Safety Foundation. Icelandair operates out of Keflavik Airport. They have daily travel services to Europe and North America. The travel fleet at Icelandair includes advanced Boeing 757 aircraft. Icelandair has played an important role in developing Tourism in Iceland throughout their history. Travel is now the fastest growing industry in Iceland.

Always take travel insurance when you travel. Having a valid travel insurance policy for traveling in foreign countries will save you money if any accidents happen. With so many various types of insurance available go to our UK travel insurance section to find out more.