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Nuuk Airport (ICAO BGGH, IATA GOH) is the international gateway to Greenland's capital, sitting on the west coast just northeast of the town centre. Long a STOL airfield restricted to smaller turboprops, it was comprehensively rebuilt between 2019 and 2024 with an extended, ILS-equipped runway and a new terminal, allowing wide-body jets to serve Nuuk directly for the first time. It remains the hub and technical base for Air Greenland and is now used year-round by Icelandair with seasonal SAS and United services.
Nuuk Airport serves Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, and is operated as part of the Greenland Airports network. It is the hub and technical base for Air Greenland, the national flag carrier, and also receives year-round Icelandair flights plus seasonal SAS and United Airlines services. Originally built in 1979 as a STOL-capable strip, the field underwent a major rebuild from 2019 to 2024, including a runway extension and a new terminal, which finally allowed larger jet aircraft to operate directly into the capital rather than routing via Kangerlussuaq. For a simulator pilot the field offers a striking Arctic approach hemmed in by fjord and mountain terrain, plus the added interest of flying into a very recently transformed airport.
The airport lies about 2 nautical miles (3.7 km) northeast of Nuuk Centrum, on the west coast of Greenland. Field elevation is 272 ft, at coordinates 64.1909N, 51.6781W. The terminal and apron sit on a levelled platform beneath the Quassussuaq mountain, with the runway bed artificially raised to compensate for a scarp immediately to the west. Sermitsiaq Mountain, a well-known local landmark, stands to the north across the fjord.
Nuuk has two hard-surfaced, lit runways sharing the 04/22 orientation. The primary runway, equipped with an ILS, has a declared landing distance of 3045 ft from runway 22 and 1619 ft from runway 04. A second, parallel hard runway, 04A/22A, measures approximately 3072 ft (04A) and 3071 ft (22A), lit but without ILS.
An Aerodrome Flight Information Service (AFIS) operates on 119.1 MHz. An ILS is available for the main 04/22 runway, supporting instrument approaches into the airfield.
Useful visual references around the field include the University of Greenland campus, roughly 700 m from the runway, and an alpine ski course about 200 m from the airport boundary. Sermitsiaq Mountain, a prominent 1,210 m peak on Sermitsiaq Island, lies to the north and is a recognisable landmark when routing toward or away from the field. Nuuk Centrum itself lies some 2 nautical miles southwest of the airport, with the former outlying suburbs of Nuussuaq, Quassussuup Tungaa and Qinngorput now built up close to the airport boundary.
Before Nuuk had a fixed-wing airport, Air Greenland's predecessor Grønlandsfly served the town from 1960 using PBY Catalina flying boats operating from the waters of Nuuk Port, a service that ended after a fatal crash in 1962 killed fifteen people. A heliport opened in the town in 1965, and Sikorsky S-61N helicopters provided Nuuk's sole air link into the late 1970s. Nuuk Airport itself opened on 1 October 1979 as part of a home-rule government programme to build a network of STOL-capable domestic airports, with the field's original single asphalt runway, 05/23, measuring 950 m by 30 m. International flights began in 1981, with a route to Iqaluit in Canada (discontinued in 1994) and services to Reykjavik via Kulusuk. For decades thereafter, longer-range jet traffic to Greenland was concentrated at Kangerlussuaq Airport, a former US Air Force base, because Nuuk's runway could not accommodate larger aircraft; Icelandair nonetheless opened a direct Reykjavik-Nuuk route in 2007. Between 2019 and 2024 the airport was rebuilt and expanded, with a runway extension and a new terminal replacing the former tower and terminal buildings, finally allowing larger jets to serve Nuuk directly.
Nuuk Airport remains the hub and technical base for Air Greenland, whose hangars are located on the field, and hosts year-round Icelandair services along with seasonal SAS and United Airlines flights. The airport is also used for charter operations, including airlifts to the summit of nearby Sermitsiaq Mountain. Following the 2019-2024 redevelopment, the extended and ILS-equipped runway and new terminal now support larger jet aircraft, including Air Greenland's A330neo, ending the airport's former restriction to smaller turboprop types.
