Oslo Airport location controversy
The location of the main airport serving the city of Oslo, Norway, has been the subject of several political debates since 1918. The first controversy was initially related to choice between the islands of Gressholmen and Lindøya in the Oslofjord for a water aerodrome. The debate later changed, arriving at the decision in 1933, to locate a new airport at Fornebu. However, Oslo Airport, Fornebu, being located on a peninsula, proved to not have sufficient space for a runway capable of intercontinental aircraft and a second runway, resulting in plans from the 1960s to replace it. The main contestants were Gardermoen Air Station, Hurum, Hobøl, Ås and a split solution between Fornebu and Gardermoen. In 1992, parliament decided to build an all-new Oslo Airport, Gardermoen; when it opened in 1998, Fornebu was closed. The decision caused the southern parts of Eastern Norway to be moved further from the main airport, and the regional, privately owned Sandefjord Airport, Torp became the base for low-cost airlines. Moss Airport, Rygge opened in 2007, becoming the third simultaneous airport to serve Oslo, and closed in 2016.
Oslo Airport, Gardermoen has been the main airport serving Oslo since 1998
Sikorsky S-43 at Gressholmen Airport in 1936
Oslo Airport, Fornebu on opening day, 1 June 1939
Three Scandinavian Airlines aircraft at Fornebu in 1972; in the foreground a DC-9-20, a DC-9-40 with a Sud Aviation Caravelle furthest away.
Sandefjord Airport, Torp is a minor international airport located 4 nautical miles northeast of Sandefjord and 110 kilometers (68 mi) south of Oslo in Norway. The airport features a 2,989-meter (9,806 ft) runway aligned 18/36. Torp partially serves as a regional airport for Vestfold and in part as a low-cost airport for Eastern Norway and the capital, Oslo. Widerøe have a base at Torp, serving both domestic and shorter International flights. It also sees scheduled flights by airBaltic, Ryanair, Wizz Air, and Norwegian Air Shuttle. As of 2021, it is the second-largest airport in eastern Norway in terms of flights after Rygge shut down in 2016.
Sandefjord Airport, Torp
Torp was in part chosen due to its proximity to Raastad Station on the Vestfold Line
Torp during construction
Douglas DC-3 of Dakota Norway landing at Torp