Greenland opens its third international airport, beside the Ilulissat Icefjord
Ilulissat, Greenland's third-largest town, opened an international airport on 29 October with a 2,200-metre runway for large jets, the last of the country's three new airports after Nuuk and Qaqortoq. It brings visitors closer to the UNESCO-listed Icefjord and cuts journey times for people in the north. The catch: it is opening in phases and will not be fully operational until summer 2027.
Step inside the new terminal and the first thing you see is ice. That is how airport manager Ole Damgaard describes it: the building opens towards Disko Bay, “and arriving passengers see the ice before they see anything else”.
Ilulissat International Airport, in Greenland’s third-largest town, opened on Thursday 29 October, after the Danish Civil Aviation and Railway Authority approved it, with security cleared without restrictions. An Air Greenland Airbus A330neo flew in from Copenhagen that day to launch the direct route, Xinhua reported. There is a wait, though: activity will ramp up gradually, with full operations planned for the summer 2027 season.
A runway long enough to cross the Atlantic
The new runway is 2,200 metres long, enough for large passenger aircraft. Airlines can now fly larger aircraft directly across the Atlantic, with new openings for air cargo and local businesses.
It is the last of Greenland’s three new airports, after Nuuk (November 2024) and Qaqortoq (April 2026). “Together they fundamentally change how the country is connected internally and how Greenland is connected to the rest of the world,” says Jens Lauridsen, CEO of Greenland Airports.
Closer to the Icefjord
For visitors, the airport brings the UNESCO-listed Ilulissat Icefjord within easier reach. For people living around Disko Bay and in North Greenland, it means shorter journeys and better connections.
Greenland Airports chairman Jens Wittrup Willumsen wants the growth to reach the towns and settlements around each airport too. Regular winter flights start in November, initially once a week.
