Aviation Museum of Iceland

The Aviation Museum of Iceland (Icelandic: Flugsafn Íslands [ˈflʏɣˌsapn ˈistlan(t)s]) covers the history of aviation in Iceland. It is housed at Akureyri Airport and was formally opened on 24 June 2000.

Aviation Museum of Iceland

Douglas DC-6 nose section on display at Aviation Museum of Iceland, 2007
Location within Iceland
Established	1999
Location	Akureyri Airport, Akureyri
Type	Aviation museum
Founder	Air Atlanta Flugfélag Íslands Flugleiðir Íslandsflug Flugmódelfélag Akureyrar Íslenska flugsögufélagið Svifflugfélag Akureyrar Vélflugfélag Akureyrar
Website	flugsafn.is

History

The museum was founded on 1 May 1999 and formally opened on 24 June 2000^[1] by Halldór Blöndal, the Speaker of the Althing.^[2] It was initially known as the Aviation Museum at Akureyri;^[3] another aviation collection existed at Hnjótur in Örlygshöfn.^[2] It was renamed in 2005 to reflect its national role.^[4][5] Svanbjörn Sigurðsson, a principal figure in the foundation of the museum, was its first director.^[3][6][7][8]

Initially in temporary quarters in a hangar rented by Íslandsbanki, the museum moved in 2007 to a purpose-built building with 2,200 square metres (24,000 sq ft) of space, approximately five times what it previously had;^[7][9] the building was officially opened by Sigrún Björk Jakobsdóttir, the mayor of Akureyri.^[10][11] It celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2009.^[3]

The aircraft collection has been used for training by the Icelandic Technical School [is].^[12]

Collection

 

Cockpit of Boeing 727 Gullfaxi

The museum has many photographs of Icelandic aviation through the years and also a number of historic aircraft,^[13] many of which it maintains in airworthy condition^[14] and flies at least once a year on an annual fly day.^[3][15] These include:

• Klemm L.25e TF-SUX, built in 1934 and brought to Iceland by Germans in 1938;^[3] the first plane to land in the Vestmannaeyjar^[6]
• Waco YKS-7 identical to TF-ÖRN, the first aircraft operated by Flugfélag Akureyrar, later Flugfélag Íslands, when it began service in 1938^[6][16]
• a twin-engine Beechcraft identical to that first brought to Iceland in 1942^[6]
• Björn Pálsson's Auster V, with which he flew the first air ambulance service in Iceland^[3][17]
• a 1943 Douglas DC-3 that saw duty at Keflavík Air Base before transfer to civilian use by Flugfélag Íslands in 1946^[12]
• the cockpit of Gullfaxi, Boeing 727 TF-FIE, the country's first jet aircraft, recovered from the Mojave Desert^{[3][6][14][18][19]}
• TF-SIF, a Aérospatiale SA-365N-1 Dauphin 2 former Icelandic Coast Guard rescue helicopter that was in service for 22 years and is credited to have been involved in the rescue of around 250 lives^{[3][6][14][19]}
• Coast Guard Fokker F-27 TF-SYN^[19]

References

1. . Visit Akureyri. Archived from the original on 24 August 2018. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
2. "Flugsafnið á Akureyri opnað um síðastliðna helgi". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 29 June 2000.
3. "Flugsafn Íslands: Fagnar Tíu Ára Afmæli Með Opnu Húsi Og Kökuboði: Hefja sig til flugs einu sinni á ári". Fréttablaðið (in Icelandic). 1 May 2009.
4. "Safnið fái viðurkenningu sem Flugsafn Íslands". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 29 January 2005. p. 23.
5. "Flugsafn Íslands: Á aðalfundi Flugsafnsins á Akureyri í síðasta mánuði var samþykkt að breyta nafni safnsins í Flugsafn Íslands". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 16 March 2005.
6. Malín Brand (22 November 2014). "Flugsagan kristallast á Akureyri". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic).
7. HS (15 November 2006). "Nýtt flugsafn kostar 150 milljónir". Fréttablaðið (in Icelandic). p. 10.
8. "Svanbjörn Sigurðsson". Morgunblaðið (memorials) (in Icelandic). 29 August 2013. p. 36.
9. JÓA (25 September 2006). "Flugsafn Íslands fær nýtt hús". Fréttablaðið (in Icelandic). p. 40.
10. "Flugsafnið á Akureyri opnað" (in Icelandic). Cabinet of Iceland. 4 November 2007.
11. "Flugsafn Akureyrar opnað í 2.200 m² húsnæði við Akureyrarflugvöll". Bændablaðið (in Icelandic). 20 November 2007. p. 27.
12. Skapti Hallgrímsson (21 February 2013). "Flugvirkjar læra loks á heimavelli". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic).
13. "Flugvélar til sýnis í Safninu" [Aircraft on view at the museum] (in Icelandic). Flugsafn Íslands. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
14. "TF-SIF fer á Flugsafnið". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 4 June 2008. p. 32.
15. Hannah Hethmon (10 March 2018). "Museums in Strange Places Podcast #12: The Icelandic Aviation Museum". The Reykjavík Grapevine (with link to podcast).
16. "Samskonar vél og TF-ÖRN í Flugsafnið". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 30 April 2010.
17. Viðar Guðjónsson (17 January 2014). "Sögufræg flugvél á Flugsafn Íslands". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic).
18. Skapti Hallgrímsson (16 September 2008). "Stjórnklefi CL-44 líklega á Flugsafnið". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). p. 6.
19. Malín Brand (3 July 2014). "Tveir leikarar á Flugsafni Íslands" (in Icelandic).

External links

•   Media related to Aviation Museum of Iceland at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website (in Icelandic)

Coordinates: 65°39′05″N 18°04′33″W / 65.6514°N 18.0757°W / 65.6514; -18.0757