Departure
89%
vs 95% ▼ 6
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Vestmannaeyjar Airport sits on the island of Heimaey in Iceland's Westman Islands archipelago, a short hop off the south coast of the mainland. It is a two-runway field handling seasonal scheduled flights to Reykjavik alongside general aviation, medevac and charter traffic, and its history is tied closely to the island's 1973 volcanic eruption.
Vestmannaeyjar Airport (ICAO: BIVM, IATA: VEY) is a two-runway aerodrome on Heimaey, the largest of the Westman Islands off Iceland's south coast. Operated by ISAVIA, it serves the town of Vestmannaeyjar with seasonal winter scheduled flights, general aviation, medical evacuation and charter operations. For the simulator pilot it offers a compact, dramatic island setting with a crossing runway layout close to steep volcanic terrain.
The airport lies on Heimaey in the Vestmannaeyjar (Westman Islands) archipelago, a small group of islands off the south coast of the Icelandic mainland. Traffic in the area is worked by Reykjavik Area Control and Reykjavik Departures.
The field has two paved, lit runway pairs. Runway 12/30 is 3,947 ft long, and runway 03/21 is 3,855 ft long; both are hard-surfaced. There is no ILS at the airport.
Reykjavik Area Control Centre works traffic on 119.7 MHz, Reykjavik Departures on 119 MHz, and the aerodrome tower operates on 118.5 MHz.
Vestmannaeyjar Airport opened on 13 November 1946 with a single 800 by 60 metre runway (13/31), and was notably the first airport built by the Icelandic government without foreign or military assistance. A first control tower was built in 1953, and the original runway was lengthened to 900 metres by 1973. Construction of a second runway, 04/22, began in 1971 but progressed slowly owing to a lack of suitable fill material on the island. During the eruption of the Eldfell volcano in 1973 the airport served as an evacuation point for elderly residents and hospital patients who could not be taken off by boat; the tephra deposited by the eruption subsequently provided material used to extend the runways to 1,300 and 1,100 metres. A new control tower followed in 1978 and a new terminal in 1980. The runways were paved in 1990, a new hangar added in 1995, and the terminal expanded and renovated in 2000. Air Iceland operated multiple daily Dash 8-200 flights to Reykjavik in its later years at the airport, alongside short private flights to the nearest mainland point at Bakki Airport. Scheduled demand fell sharply after the Landeyjahofn ferry harbour opened in July 2010, cutting the mainland crossing to 30 minutes, and Air Iceland ended scheduled service on 3 August 2010. Eagle Air then took over as the main operator using smaller aircraft, before suspending regular flights in September 2020. Since then, service has continued through a series of government-subsidised seasonal contracts, including periods flown by Air Iceland Connect, Eagle Air and Myflug Air, with Norlandair acquiring the routes in April 2025.
As of 2025 the airport hosts seasonal winter scheduled passenger flights to Reykjavik, operated by Norlandair, alongside general aviation, medical evacuation and charter traffic. Icelandair has previously run charter flights to the island during the annual Thjodhatid festival held each August.
