Sandefjord Airport
Encyclopedia
Sandefjord Airport, Torp is an international
airport
located 4 NM northeast of Sandefjord
, Norway
and 118km south of Oslo
, Norway
. It serves both as regional airport for Vestfold
and Telemark
, and as a low-cost airport for Eastern Norway. Domestic services are provided by Widerøe
, while international services are provided by KLM Cityhopper
, Widerøe, Norwegian Air Shuttle
, Ryanair
and Wizz Air
. The airport is sometimes referred to as Oslo-Torp or Oslo-Sandefjord by low-cost airlines, despite being more than thrice the distance, 118km, from Oslo
as Gardermoen
, and it lacks high-speed rail transport.
Domestic services are provided to Bergen
, Stavanger
, Trondheim
, Bodø
and Tromsø
. Torp is owned and operated by Sandefjord Lufthavn AS, which in turn is owned by the municipalities of Sandefjord and Stokke
, Vestfold County Municipality and a private investment group. Torp is the largest commercial airport in Norway not owned by the state through Avinor
.
and Norway's membership in NATO, it became strategically important to build several new air stations in the country. This was based on a United States analysis in 1951, led by General Robert K. Taylor, that wanted to station three wings, each of 75 aircraft, in Denmark
and Norway. Each wing would have about 3,000 American personnel permanently stationed. Norwegian policy prohibited permanent stationing of foreign military personnel on Norwegian soil, but allowed the United States to build air stations that would be suitable for refueling before attacking targets within Eastern Europe
. There were two main strategies that NATO intended to use that would require a new military air station in Southern Norway. The first was the "polar strategy", that involved NATO aircraft flying nuclear weapon
s into the Soviet Union
. This would require refueling stations in Norway, but only about twenty permanently stationed personnel. The second was to station aircraft to allow a flanking maneuver
if Soviet troops were to attack Central Europe
.
Negotiations between NATO, the United States and Norway were initiated on 27 March 1951. The United States wanted to own and operate the air stations themselves, and use the stations for preemptive strike
s towards the Soviet Union. At the time, air stations were available for use at Sola
, Gardermoen
, Lista
and Ørland
, but more capacity would be needed. On 24 November, the United States proposed converting Tønsberg Airport, Jarlsberg
into an air force station. NATO dedicated NOK 48 million to rebuild the airport. The issue was discussed in parliament on 4 March 1952 along with several other proposals to build air stations or expand airports to meet NATO's needs, namely Gardermoen, Jarlsberg, Lista, Ørland, Bardufoss and Rygge. Parliament voted to fund the program with NOK 92 million of a NOK 277.6 million budget. In May 1952, Prime Minister Oscar Torp
informed United States General Dwight D. Eisenhower
that he intended to try to convince parliament to change the Norwegian base policies to allow permanent stationing of foreign troops. This was not successful, and parliament would not change the policy. Instead, the politicians hoped the American fighters based in Denmark would defend Norway.
Closer investigations of Jarlsberg showed that the airport was not suitable for expansion. The airport was expanded in 1950, and has received a 1200 metres (3,937 ft) runway. An air station for Republic F-84 Thunderjet fighter jets would require a 3000 metres (9,842.5 ft) runway, and due to surrounding hills this was not possible. Instead, the military looked at Langåker and Torp as possible locations. However, the military did note that Jarlsberg would be easier to defend, but that the defensibility was correlated to the rugged terrain that made expansion difficult. Torp was also preferred due to its close proximity to the European Route E18
and the Vestfold Line and Råstad Station. The choice of location approved by NATO on 6 September 1952, and by the government on 12 September. It was passed in unanimously by parliament on 18 October, with only Torgeir Andreas Berge
speaking up against the location. Berge, who lived within the approach area of the airport, was concerned about noise pollution affecting the local population.
In February 1953, the government expropriated
the necessary land, 4 square kilometres (1.5 sq mi), of which 3.5 square kilometres (1.4 sq mi) was forest and 0.25 square kilometre (0.0965255396481338 sq mi) was fields and 0.25 square kilometre (0.0965255396481338 sq mi) was pasture. About half the area was in the municipality of Stokke, the rest in the former municipality of Sandar
. Thirty-seven land-owners were affected, and they were compensated NOK 3.75 million. The builder was the Norwegian Defence Estates Agency
and the main contractor was Astrup & Aubert
. Other major contractors was Lo-Wi-Co that did most of the explosives, and Byggmester Thor Kandal jr. that built the buildings. A pumping station for fuel was built at the shore at Bogen, and a pipeline built to the air station. The fuel was transported to Bogen with small tank ships
from Vølle and later Slagentangen. This system was built by the United States, and was in use until 1993. The runway and taxiway were built in concrete. Up to twenty people worked on the construction at any time. The official opening occurred on 2 July 1956, when two F-84s landed at 11:00.
granted permission to establish a municipal civilian sector at Torp. At the time, Jarlsberg was still being used for scheduled services to Vestfold, and the plans to open Torp as a civilian airport met political resistance from Tønsberg. The civilian sector would cost NOK 900,000, including a terminal building
, a control tower
, small maintenance facilities and a tarmac. A limited company
, Andelslaget Torp flyplass, was established on 24 October 1958. In addition to the municipalities of Stokke and Sandar, seval local companies and private individuals bought shares. The company changed its name to AS Torp Flyplass in 1959.
The first civilian aircraft to land was a Douglas DC-3
from Fred Olsen Air Transport
in 1958. The first scheduled flight was a Braathens SAFE
Fokker F27
on 13 October, a route that flew daily from Oslo along the South Coast to Stavanger
. The construction was completed on 15 September 1959 and the airport was officially opened on 5 October. On 16 October, both Oslo Airport, Fornebu
and Oslo Airport, Gardermoen
were closed due to fog, and eight scheduled aircraft were rerouted to Sandefjord. In 1960, the name of the company was changed to AS Sandefjord Lufthavn, and the airport named Sandefjord Airport, Torp. Local patriots had expected Braathens SAFE to relocate their route from Jarlsberg to Torp after the opening of the airport, but this was not done. In 1960, Braathens SAFE received concession
to fly from Oslo via Sandefjord and Kristiansand
to Aalborg
in Denmark twice a week. The service was terminated after a single season due to Scandinavian Airlines taking over the route, and removing Sandefjord from the route.
. By the 1970s, the airport company was still losing money, and in 1978 the airport had 3,000 passengers. The following year, the airport had 7,800 passengers, but this fell to 5,400 in 1982.
On 26 March 1984, Busy Bee
, Braathens SAFE's regional airline, started flights from Torp. It operated a single daily round trip from Sandefjord via Stavanger and Haugesund
to Bergen
. The company never made a profit on the service, and terminated it in 1991, following an agreement that one Fokker 50 aircraft was to be sold to Widerøe Norsk Air. In 1985, Sandefjordbanken established a branch at the airport.
. In February 1986, Vestfold Industrial Association established the company I/S Vestfold Næringsliv for Torp (VNFT, renamed Vestfold Flyplassinvest in 1997). This company, along with the county municipality and Stokke Municipality, bought part of AS Sandefjord Lufthavn on 28 April 1987 through a private placement of NOK 18 million. This gave Sandefjord 42.0%, Vestold 35.5%, VNFT 13.5% and Stokke 9.0% ownership.
The new owners concluded that the airport needed a new control tower and a new terminal building. Construction was sent as a public tender in 1987, but the military decided to stop the plans. At this time, a debate about a new location for Oslo Airport had started, with one of the proposals to use Gardermoen, that was one of the two permanently used air stations in Eastern Norway. The air force was afraid that they would have to abandon Gardermoen and relocate to Torp. It would be likely that this would give twenty or forty fighter jets stationed at Torp. The military expansion plans were not in line with the civilian ones. At the same time, the military felt that the existing terminal building was located too close to the arsenal, and a new terminal was needed further away. The airport operators needed additional space. The old terminal had a capacity of 10,000 passengers; in 1984, it served 42,486, and in 1987, 100,907 passengers. By 1990, the issues related to Gardermoen had been resolved, and the military no longer had objections to expanding Torp.
The private placement in 1987 allowed sufficient financing of a new terminal building. It was a 3000 square metres (3,588 sq yd) pointed building that was planned to have the largest possible surface facing the tarmac, to allow the most possible aircraft to park. It was constructed in such a way that it could be easily expanded in both directions. The new terminal was completed in 1991 and cost NOK 47 million. This also included 29700 square kilometres (11,467.2 sq mi) tarmac, and expansion of the taxiway and parking for 300 cars. There was also a need to upgrade the runway, that had had no major maintenance since construction. The end of the Cold War
had reduced the threat level and the military no longer saw a need to keep Torp at as high a level. However, the civilian airport operator needed the upgrades. They proposed that the airport operator advance the money, but this was rejected by the Defence Estates Agency. NATO decided that they had too many air stations, and was not willing to pay either. The airport operator still took the chance that the military would repay the advance, since it had done so in similar situation earlier. The runway was upgraded for NOK 10 million in 1989, but only NOK 1 million was refunded in 1993. The first charter flights from Torp were conducted in 1989. In 1992, Saga started flights to Mallorca, as did Vingreiser. These are today part of MyTravel
. In 1991, Torp Café and Catering started a restaurant in the terminal building and at the same time offered catering to the airlines. The catering was taken over by Select Service Partner in 1998.
Following the Oslo Airport localization controversy
in the 1980s and early 1990s, parliament decided to locate the new main airport for Eastern Norway at Gardermoen, north of Oslo. This made the main airport for Buskerud, Vestfold and Telemark further from the main airport, and proved to strengthen the regional position of Torp. By 1990, the airport was again losing money, with a loss of NOK 2.1 million, but the passenger numbers were up to 137,279. In 1992, the debate about ownership woke again, this time with the Civil Aviation Administration considering if it should purchase part of all of the airport. In 1992 the airport had 142,983 passengers, and the Civil Aviation Administration estimated that the airport would have 280,000 passengers following the closing of Fornebu in 1998. Local politicians did not want to sell the whole airport to the state, and the Civil Aviation Administration was not interested in purchasing part of the airport, so a sale did not go through.
The air traffic employees in the control tower worked for the Civil Aviation Administration. In October 1991, they went on strike demanding that they receive better working conditions. However, the airport owner and the Civil Aviation Administration could not agree on who had the responsibility to build a new tower. Since 1987, the airport operator kept all landing fees, while the Civil Aviation Administration collects the navigation fees. The air force stated that it had no need for an upgrade to the airport, and was not willing to pay for further investments. The Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications
stated that the Civil Aviation Administration had previously decided that the state would not give subsidies to Sandefjord Airport, and that such investments must be carried by the operating company. Plans were made, but construction was stopped by the military in 1991. The next plan was launched in 1996, and parliament decided that the state would finance the new tower. However, when construction was to commence in 1998, the ministry decided that the tower instead should be financed by the airport operator. The ministry stated that this was because they did not want to use the limited state funds, that were entirely generated from user fees, to invest in airports that the state had chosen to not operate. It also stated that investments should be concentrated on security rather than increased capacity, and that the airport operating company had sufficient capital to finance the investments. Construction started in 1999 and was finished in 2001. The tower is identical tho the one at Tromsø Airport and cost NOK 40 million.
. The Irish airline Ryanair
wanted to use this to establish several routes from London Stansted Airport
, including Oslo. They intended to market Sandefjord Airport as Oslo South (later Oslo Torp). Ryanair and Torp had meetings to discuss the matter, but the airport instead wanted SAS and Braathens SAFE to establish routes. However, neither of these were interested in this. To create pressure against Ryanair in the negotiations, the airport operator contacted EasyJet
, who also considered flying from London to Torp. In the end, Ryanair was the only airline that established itself following the deregulation. The first Ryanair flight, with a Boeing 737-200
, departed on 3 November 1997. The branding of Torp as Oslo caused a heated discussion between the Civil Aviation Administration, after the International Air Transport Association
in 1998 placed Sandefjord Airport under the area code for Oslo.
In 1996, Torp had 158,972 passengers and the company lost NOK 1.3 million. In addition, a new private placement was made for NOK 3.5 million by the existing owners. In 1998, the airport had 410,944 passengers and a profit of NOK 349,000. Sandefjord became the country's tenth-largest airport. In 1999, the airport had 684,431 passengers and a profit of NOK 23.4 million. The terminal was expanded to fit 1 million passengers annually, and a new parking house was built. From 1998, Sandefjord Airport strengthened itself in two directions. The commercial interests of Telemark
declared that they would focus on using the larger Sandefjord Airport than Skien Airport, Geiteryggen
. At the same time, the moving of Oslo Airport from Fornebu to Gardermoen made Torp a more viable regional airport. By 2000, the airport had 758,951 passengers. The duty-free store was operated by Norsk Air, later by Widerøe, until 1998, when it was taken over by SAS Catering
. From 2006, it was taken over by Jotunfjell Partners. Until 1999, the sheriff's office in Sandefjord was responsible for border control at Torp. From 1999, the airport has been a separate border control office, and by 2004 it had 23 employees. Since 2003, the custom's office for Vestfold is located at Torp, and the Norwegian Customs and Excise Authorities has about fifty employees stationed.
On 3 November 1996, ConTigo
started chater flights flights using Boeing 727
, but terminated services after 22 December. Coast Air
started flights from Sandefjord to Haugesund Airport, Karmøy
on 26 October 1998 twice daily. SAS started two daily flights to Copenhagen from 29 March 1999; these were taken over by Widerøe from 1 January 2002. Braathens, along with its partner KLM, started operating from Sandefjord. KLM offered Fokker 70 services to its hub at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol three times daily from 1 May 1999 through their subsidiary KLM Cityhopper
. Braathens started operating services with Boeing 737s to Stavanger and Bergen on 9 May, but terminated the services from 1 November due to low yield. Sun Air of Scandinavia
, a franchise of British Airways
, started flights from Torp to Billund Airport
on 1 November 1999, but this was terminated in March 2000. GuardAir
started flights from Torp to Ålesund Airport, Vigra
, Kristiansand and Gothenburg
in 1998, as well as moving the company's head offices to Torp, but the airline went bankrupt in 2001. Goodjet started flights from Torp to Beauvais-Tillé Airport of Paris on 15 July 2002 using Airbus A320
. The airline terminated all services on 6 December.
On 4 April 2002, Ryanair started flights to Glasgow Prestwick Airport. The same year, the airport expanded the international arrival section, and the airport passed one million annual passengers, and the airport is the seventh largest in the country. The profit had sunk to NOK 9.3 million. In 2003, a new international terminal was opened. On 4 April, Ryanair started a service to Stockholm-Skavsta Airport
(Now moved to Moss Airport, Rygge
). In 2004, the airport had 1,084,244 passengers, and a revenue of NOK 163.2 million. A survey conducted in 2004 showed that 64% of the passengers at Torp were tourist rather than business travelers, about twice the level of other airports. The same year, both Widerøe and Ryanair had 450,000 passengers, while KLM had 80,000. The largest destination was London with 250,000 passengers, followed by Copenhagen and Frankfurt with 120,000.
24 million to expand the terminal. The check-in has been a bottle neck, and the expansion will give the airport a capacity of 2.5 million passengers per year. The airport is also working on expanding the taxiway
.
focuses on serving Torp as a premium airline with services to the largest domestic cities, plus an international service to their owner's main hub in Copenhagen. KLM Cityhopper operates three daily feeder services from Torp to KLM's main hub in Amsterdam. The remaining services are provided by the low-cost airlines Ryanair and Wizz Air, that provide a range of international services throughout Europe.
Torp is also the home of Norway's only flying Douglas DC-3
. It is operated by Dakota Norway, a non-profit organization, and tours around the area are available at selected days during the summer season.
from both ends. The control tower services are operated by Avinor
. The tarmac has eleven aircraft stands. Deicing
is available. Widerøe Handling Services
is the only handling agent
at the airport.
) are also available.
Wireless internet access is available throughout the airport. The service is provided free of charge.
has the largest maintenance facility at Torp, providing full maintenance for the airlines own fleet of Dash 8 series 100, 300, and 400 aircraft. Helifly provides maintenance for both aircraft and helicopters. Flyvedlikehold provides maintenance for both aircraft and helicopters, engines, and is a retailer of pilot accessories like headsets, helmets, and so on.
-- via Oslo Airport
and Oslo Central Station -- and Skien
. There are hourly trains in each direction, supplemented by rush-hour trains. Travel time to Oslo is 1 hour 48 minutes, and to Oslo Airport it is 2 hours 23 minutes. A shuttle bus corresponds to all trains during the opening hours of the airport, and a bus trip takes four minutes to the airport terminal. The shuttle bus leaves the airport ten minutes before each train's scheduled departure. The bus is operated by NSB, and is included in the price of the train ticket. There are 42 bus departures each day.
to Oslo in correspondence with all of Ryanair's and Wizz Air's flights. Travel time is 1 hour and 50 minutes. Telemarkekspressen, a Norway Bussekspress service operated by Nettbuss
and Telemark Bilruter
, offers coach services to Telemark, including Skien
, Porsgrunn
, Ulefoss
, Bø
and Seljord
. The Norway Bussekpress service Sørlandsekspressen operates from a halt on the E18 (not from the airport terminal) to several cities along the South Coast to Kristiansand
. From Østfold
, the service Flybåten Express Østfold–Vestfold operates a coach on the Moss–Horten Ferry
to Torp. This involves a change of coach in Tønsberg. During winter, there are occasional buses that correspond to ski resorts in Gol
, Geilo
and Hemsedal
.
. Travel to distance to Sandefjord is 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) and to Oslo is 110 kilometres (68.4 mi). The distance to Oslo Airport, Gardermoen is 167 kilometres (103.8 mi), and to Moss Airport, Rygge is 63 kilometres (39.1 mi) (via the Moss–Horten Ferry). The airport has 460 parking spaces in a garage, 1,720 parking spaces outdoors and 150 short-term places. Parking is operated by EuroPark
. Car rental and taxis are available.
International airport
An international airport is any airport that can accommodate flights from other countries and are typically equipped with customs and immigration facilities to handle these flights to and from other countries...
airport
Airport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
located 4 NM northeast of Sandefjord
Sandefjord
is a city and municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Sandefjord. The municipality of Sandefjord was established on 1 January 1838...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
and 118km south of Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. It serves both as regional airport for Vestfold
Vestfold
is a county in Norway, bordering Buskerud and Telemark. The county administration is in Tønsberg.Vestfold is located west of the Oslofjord, as the name indicates. It includes many smaller, but well-known towns in Norway, such as Larvik, Sandefjord, Tønsberg and Horten. The river Numedalslågen runs...
and Telemark
Telemark
is a county in Norway, bordering Vestfold, Buskerud, Hordaland, Rogaland and Aust-Agder. The county administration is in Skien. Until 1919 the county was known as Bratsberg amt.-Location:...
, and as a low-cost airport for Eastern Norway. Domestic services are provided by Widerøe
Widerøe
Widerøe's Flyveselskap AS, trading as Widerøe, is a regional airline in Norway and part of the SAS Group. It operates a fleet of 34 Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft , serving 41 domestic and 6 international destinations...
, while international services are provided by KLM Cityhopper
KLM Cityhopper
KLM Cityhopper is the regional subsidiary of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines . The airline, with its head office, the Convair Building, on the grounds of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in Schiphol-Oost, Haarlemmermeer, operates short haul services in and around Europe...
, Widerøe, Norwegian Air Shuttle
Norwegian Air Shuttle
Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA , trading as Norwegian, is the second-largest airline in Scandinavia. In 2010, it transported 13.0 million people. As of October 2011, Norwegian operates a total fleet of 62 aircraft; 17 Boeing 737-300s and 45 Boeing 737-800s...
, Ryanair
Ryanair
Ryanair is an Irish low-cost airline. Its head office is at Dublin Airport and its primary operational bases at Dublin Airport and London Stansted Airport....
and Wizz Air
Wizz Air
Wizz Air Hungary Légiközlekedési Kft. is a Hungarian low-cost airline with headquarters in the Airport Business Park C2 in Vecsés, close to Budapest Ferihegy International Airport, Hungary. The airline typically uses secondary airports serving many cities across Europe.- History :The airline was...
. The airport is sometimes referred to as Oslo-Torp or Oslo-Sandefjord by low-cost airlines, despite being more than thrice the distance, 118km, from Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
as Gardermoen
Oslo Airport, Gardermoen
Oslo Airport, Gardermoen is the principal airport serving Oslo, Norway. It acts as the main domestic hub and international airport for Norway, and the second-busiest airport in the Nordic countries. A hub for Scandinavian Airlines and Norwegian Air Shuttle, and a focus city for Widerøe, it is...
, and it lacks high-speed rail transport.
Domestic services are provided to Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
, Stavanger
Stavanger
Stavanger is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.Stavanger municipality has a population of 126,469. There are 197,852 people living in the Stavanger conurbation, making Stavanger the fourth largest city, but the third largest urban area, in Norway...
, Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
, Bodø
Bodø
is a city and a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Salten region.The city of Bodø was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . Bodin was merged with Bodø on 1 January 1968. Skjerstad was merged with Bodø on 1 January 2005...
and Tromsø
Tromsø
Tromsø is a city and municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø.Tromsø city is the ninth largest urban area in Norway by population, and the seventh largest city in Norway by population...
. Torp is owned and operated by Sandefjord Lufthavn AS, which in turn is owned by the municipalities of Sandefjord and Stokke
Stokke
Stokke is a municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Stokke.-Background:The municipality of Stokke was established on 1 January 1838...
, Vestfold County Municipality and a private investment group. Torp is the largest commercial airport in Norway not owned by the state through Avinor
Avinor
Avinor AS is a state owned limited company in that operates most of the civil airports in Norway. The Norwegian state, via the Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications controls 100 percent of the share capital. Avinor was created on 1 January 2003, by the privatization of the...
.
Establishment
Following World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and Norway's membership in NATO, it became strategically important to build several new air stations in the country. This was based on a United States analysis in 1951, led by General Robert K. Taylor, that wanted to station three wings, each of 75 aircraft, in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
and Norway. Each wing would have about 3,000 American personnel permanently stationed. Norwegian policy prohibited permanent stationing of foreign military personnel on Norwegian soil, but allowed the United States to build air stations that would be suitable for refueling before attacking targets within Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
. There were two main strategies that NATO intended to use that would require a new military air station in Southern Norway. The first was the "polar strategy", that involved NATO aircraft flying nuclear weapon
Nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission bomb test released the same amount...
s into the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. This would require refueling stations in Norway, but only about twenty permanently stationed personnel. The second was to station aircraft to allow a flanking maneuver
Flanking maneuver
In military tactics, a flanking maneuver, also called a flank attack, is an attack on the sides of an opposing force. If a flanking maneuver succeeds, the opposing force would be surrounded from two or more directions, which significantly reduces the maneuverability of the outflanked force and its...
if Soviet troops were to attack Central Europe
Central Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...
.
Negotiations between NATO, the United States and Norway were initiated on 27 March 1951. The United States wanted to own and operate the air stations themselves, and use the stations for preemptive strike
Preemptive war
A preemptive war is a war that is commenced in an attempt to repel or defeat a perceived inevitable offensive or invasion, or to gain a strategic advantage in an impending war before that threat materializes. It is a war which preemptively 'breaks the peace'. The term: 'preemptive war' is...
s towards the Soviet Union. At the time, air stations were available for use at Sola
Sola Air Station
Sola Air Station in Sola municipality in Norway is operated by the Royal Norwegian Air Force. Air Wing 134 is stationed at Sola along with helicopter Squadron 330....
, Gardermoen
Gardermoen Air Station
Gardermoen Air Station is located about 50 km north of Oslo, Norway. It is the location for the 135th Airwing and the 335th Squadron of the Royal Norwegian Air Force, which currently operates two of the four recently procured C-130J-30 Super Hercules transport aircraft...
, Lista
Farsund Airport, Lista
Farsund Airport, Lista , is a now closed former public and military aerodrome located in Farsund, Norway. Until 1996 is was also the Royal Norwegian Air Force Lista Air Station, and until 2002 it was part of Luftfartsverket...
and Ørland
Ørland Main Air Station
Ørland Main Air Station is situated at the mouth of the Trondheimsfjord in the municipality of Ørland, in the center of Norway. Ørland is operated by the Royal Norwegian Air Force and is an important air base not only for Norway, but also for NATO...
, but more capacity would be needed. On 24 November, the United States proposed converting Tønsberg Airport, Jarlsberg
Tønsberg Airport, Jarlsberg
Tønsberg Airport, Jarlsberg , sometimes called Jarlsberg Airport is located in Tønsberg, Norway.Jarlsberg airport was founded in 1937, and has since then been used for private, commercial and military operations...
into an air force station. NATO dedicated NOK 48 million to rebuild the airport. The issue was discussed in parliament on 4 March 1952 along with several other proposals to build air stations or expand airports to meet NATO's needs, namely Gardermoen, Jarlsberg, Lista, Ørland, Bardufoss and Rygge. Parliament voted to fund the program with NOK 92 million of a NOK 277.6 million budget. In May 1952, Prime Minister Oscar Torp
Oscar Torp
was a Norwegian politician for the Norwegian Labour Party. He was party leader from 1923 to 1945, and mayor of Oslo in 1935 and 1936. In 1935 he became acting Minister of Defence in the government of Johan Nygaardsvold. He was also Minister of Social Affairs from 1936 to 1939, and then Minister of...
informed United States General Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
that he intended to try to convince parliament to change the Norwegian base policies to allow permanent stationing of foreign troops. This was not successful, and parliament would not change the policy. Instead, the politicians hoped the American fighters based in Denmark would defend Norway.
Closer investigations of Jarlsberg showed that the airport was not suitable for expansion. The airport was expanded in 1950, and has received a 1200 metres (3,937 ft) runway. An air station for Republic F-84 Thunderjet fighter jets would require a 3000 metres (9,842.5 ft) runway, and due to surrounding hills this was not possible. Instead, the military looked at Langåker and Torp as possible locations. However, the military did note that Jarlsberg would be easier to defend, but that the defensibility was correlated to the rugged terrain that made expansion difficult. Torp was also preferred due to its close proximity to the European Route E18
European route E18
European route E18 runs from Craigavon in the United Kingdom to Saint Petersburg in Russia, passing through Norway, Sweden, and Finland. It is about 1,890 km in length.-United Kingdom:...
and the Vestfold Line and Råstad Station. The choice of location approved by NATO on 6 September 1952, and by the government on 12 September. It was passed in unanimously by parliament on 18 October, with only Torgeir Andreas Berge
Torgeir Andreas Berge
Torgeir Andreas Berge was a Norwegian farmer and politician for the Labour Party from Sandar. He represented Vestfold for three periods in the Parliament of Norway from 1950 to 1961. Prior to that, he sat in the municipal council of Sandar from 1945 to 1955...
speaking up against the location. Berge, who lived within the approach area of the airport, was concerned about noise pollution affecting the local population.
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
the necessary land, 4 square kilometres (1.5 sq mi), of which 3.5 square kilometres (1.4 sq mi) was forest and 0.25 square kilometre (0.0965255396481338 sq mi) was fields and 0.25 square kilometre (0.0965255396481338 sq mi) was pasture. About half the area was in the municipality of Stokke, the rest in the former municipality of Sandar
Sandar
Sandar is a former municipality in Vestfold county, Norway.Sandar was established as a municipality January 1, 1838...
. Thirty-seven land-owners were affected, and they were compensated NOK 3.75 million. The builder was the Norwegian Defence Estates Agency
Norwegian Defence Estates Agency
The Norwegian Defence Estates Agency is a Norwegian government agency responsible for the real estate belonging to the Military of Norway. It is not part of the military operations, but is instead directly subordinate the Norwegian Ministry of Defence, and established on January 1, 2002...
and the main contractor was Astrup & Aubert
Veidekke
Veidekke is the largest Norwegian construction company and the fourth largest in Scandinavia. Veidekke’s business involves a network of Scandinavian construction operations, rehabilitation work, major heavy construction contracts and development of dwellings for the company’s own account as well...
. Other major contractors was Lo-Wi-Co that did most of the explosives, and Byggmester Thor Kandal jr. that built the buildings. A pumping station for fuel was built at the shore at Bogen, and a pipeline built to the air station. The fuel was transported to Bogen with small tank ships
Tanker (ship)
A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...
from Vølle and later Slagentangen. This system was built by the United States, and was in use until 1993. The runway and taxiway were built in concrete. Up to twenty people worked on the construction at any time. The official opening occurred on 2 July 1956, when two F-84s landed at 11:00.
First civilian operation
During the 1950s, the interest to use Torp as an air station dwindled. Norway did not need the station for regular stationing of aircraft, and the United States did not need it as long as Norway did not allow permanent stationing of foreign troops. In October 1956, the military stated that they did not mind if Torp also had a civilian sector. The municipalities established committee, and on 2 October 1957 the Norwegian Ministry of Transport and CommunicationsNorwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications
The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Transportation and Communications is a Norwegian ministry established in 1946, and is responsible for transportation and communication infrastructure in Norway. It is led by Magnhild Meltveit Kleppa...
granted permission to establish a municipal civilian sector at Torp. At the time, Jarlsberg was still being used for scheduled services to Vestfold, and the plans to open Torp as a civilian airport met political resistance from Tønsberg. The civilian sector would cost NOK 900,000, including a terminal building
Airport terminal
An airport terminal is a building at an airport where passengers transfer between ground transportation and the facilities that allow them to board and disembark from aircraft....
, a control tower
Control tower
A control tower, or more specifically an Air Traffic Control Tower , is the name of the airport building from which the air traffic control unit controls the movement of aircraft on and around the airport. Control towers are also used to control the traffic for other forms of transportation such...
, small maintenance facilities and a tarmac. A limited company
Aksjeselskap
Aksjeselskap is the Norwegian term for a stock-based company. It is usually abbreviated AS or A/S, especially when used in company names. An AS is always a limited company, i.e. the owners cannot be held liable for any debt beyond the stock capital...
, Andelslaget Torp flyplass, was established on 24 October 1958. In addition to the municipalities of Stokke and Sandar, seval local companies and private individuals bought shares. The company changed its name to AS Torp Flyplass in 1959.
The first civilian aircraft to land was a Douglas DC-3
Douglas DC-3
The Douglas DC-3 is an American fixed-wing propeller-driven aircraft whose speed and range revolutionized air transport in the 1930s and 1940s. Its lasting impact on the airline industry and World War II makes it one of the most significant transport aircraft ever made...
from Fred Olsen Air Transport
Fred Olsen Air Transport
Fred Olsen Air Transport was based in Norway and operated between 1946 and 1997.-Company history:The airline was set up in June 1946 as a subsidiary of Fred. Olsen & Co.. Initially, freight and passenger charter flights were conducted using Douglas DC-3, frequently carrying ships crews...
in 1958. The first scheduled flight was a Braathens SAFE
Braathens
Braathens ASA, until 1997 Braathens South American & Far East Airtransport A/S and trading as Braathens SAFE, is a former Norwegian airline that operated from 1946 until it merged with Scandinavian Airlines Norway to become SAS Braathens in 2004. The airline was based in Oslo, first at Fornebu,...
Fokker F27
Fokker F27
The Fokker F27 Friendship is a turboprop airliner designed and built by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker.-Design and development:Design of the Fokker F27 started in the 1950s as a replacement to the successful Douglas DC-3 airliner...
on 13 October, a route that flew daily from Oslo along the South Coast to Stavanger
Stavanger
Stavanger is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.Stavanger municipality has a population of 126,469. There are 197,852 people living in the Stavanger conurbation, making Stavanger the fourth largest city, but the third largest urban area, in Norway...
. The construction was completed on 15 September 1959 and the airport was officially opened on 5 October. On 16 October, both Oslo Airport, Fornebu
Oslo Airport, Fornebu
Oslo Airport, Fornebu was the main airport serving Oslo and Eastern Norway from 1 June 1939 to 7 October 1998. It was then replaced by Oslo Airport, Gardermoen and the area has since been redeveloped. The airport was located at Fornebu in Bærum, from the city center. Fornebu had two runways, one...
and Oslo Airport, Gardermoen
Oslo Airport, Gardermoen
Oslo Airport, Gardermoen is the principal airport serving Oslo, Norway. It acts as the main domestic hub and international airport for Norway, and the second-busiest airport in the Nordic countries. A hub for Scandinavian Airlines and Norwegian Air Shuttle, and a focus city for Widerøe, it is...
were closed due to fog, and eight scheduled aircraft were rerouted to Sandefjord. In 1960, the name of the company was changed to AS Sandefjord Lufthavn, and the airport named Sandefjord Airport, Torp. Local patriots had expected Braathens SAFE to relocate their route from Jarlsberg to Torp after the opening of the airport, but this was not done. In 1960, Braathens SAFE received concession
Concession (contract)
A concession is a business operated under a contract or license associated with a degree of exclusivity in business within a certain geographical area. For example, sports arenas or public parks may have concession stands. Many department stores contain numerous concessions operated by other...
to fly from Oslo via Sandefjord and Kristiansand
Kristiansand
-History:As indicated by archeological findings in the city, the Kristiansand area has been settled at least since 400 AD. A royal farm is known to have been situated on Oddernes as early as 800, and the first church was built around 1040...
to Aalborg
Aalborg
-Transport:On the north side of the Limfjord is Nørresundby, which is connected to Aalborg by a road bridge Limfjordsbroen, an iron railway bridge Jernbanebroen over Limfjorden, as well as a motorway tunnel running under the Limfjord Limfjordstunnelen....
in Denmark twice a week. The service was terminated after a single season due to Scandinavian Airlines taking over the route, and removing Sandefjord from the route.
Military activity
In 1957, NATO decided to build arsenals for nuclear weapons in all member countries, including Norway. Because the weapons were to be operated only by American personnel, this was in violation with Norwegian base policy. However, foreign personnel was allowed to be based in Norway during war, and therefore infrastructure would be allowed to be built in Norway to allow nuclear weapons to operate from Norway during war. Norway approved that seven air stations, including Torp, would have conventional ammunition storages that could be converted to nuclear weapons storage facilities in war, and allow the weapons to be transported into Norway following the declaration of war. The arsenals were built underground in bedrock with reinforced concrete. The arsenal caused massive local protests, and the municipal council made a declaration where it supported the concerns raised about the danger of an explosion. The protests were not taken consideration to, following a report from another division of the military that stated that the risk of an explosion was close to zero. Construction started in May 1961. The hangar that was built at Torp was used by Horten Flyfabrikk from 1956 to 1965. It had up to 270 employees and had previously been based at Jarlsberg. In 1967, Marinens Hovedverft performed maintenance of a single aircraft, but terminated operations at Torp after this.Slow growth
In 1968, the municipalities of Sandefjord and Sandar merged, giving the Sandefjord a 93.11% ownership in the airport. During the entire 1960s, the airport company lost money. In 1974, Nor-Fly started operating from Sandefjord. The airline at first had a Douglas DC-3, and later four Convair 440. The company had been established in 1952, and started flights from Sandefjord to serve commuters and business travelers to Western Norway and the oil industry. The airline applied, but was not granted concessions for scheduled services. In 1985, the airline was sold to PartnairPartnair
Partnair was a Norwegian charter airline company owned by Terje and Rolf Thoresen. The company was formed by a merger including Nor-Fly Charter in 1985. The company operated mainly in the ad hoc marked with oil companies as their primary customer...
. By the 1970s, the airport company was still losing money, and in 1978 the airport had 3,000 passengers. The following year, the airport had 7,800 passengers, but this fell to 5,400 in 1982.
On 26 March 1984, Busy Bee
Busy Bee
Busy Bee of Norway, branded simply Busy Bee was an airline that operated in Norway between 1966 and 1992. The airline was started by Braathens S.A.F.E under the name Busy Bee Air Service. The airline flew charter and wet lease for Braathens SAFE and Scandinavian Airlines with Fokker F-27, Fokker 50...
, Braathens SAFE's regional airline, started flights from Torp. It operated a single daily round trip from Sandefjord via Stavanger and Haugesund
Haugesund
is a town and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.-Location:Haugesund was separated from Torvastad as a town and municipality of its own in 1855. The rural municipality of Skåre was merged with Haugesund on January 1, 1958. Haugesund is a small municipality, only 73 km²...
to Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
. The company never made a profit on the service, and terminated it in 1991, following an agreement that one Fokker 50 aircraft was to be sold to Widerøe Norsk Air. In 1985, Sandefjordbanken established a branch at the airport.
Expansion
In 1985, the airport made a NOK 2.1 million profit. During the mid-1980s, local commercial interests stated that they wanted more activity at Torp. This led to a public debate about the structure and need for investments in the airport. Three main strategies were proposed: the municipality sold the airport to private investors; the municipality, Vestfold County Municipality and private investors took over operation of the airport; or the airport was taken over, fully or in part, by the state-owned Civil Aviation AdministrationAvinor
Avinor AS is a state owned limited company in that operates most of the civil airports in Norway. The Norwegian state, via the Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications controls 100 percent of the share capital. Avinor was created on 1 January 2003, by the privatization of the...
. In February 1986, Vestfold Industrial Association established the company I/S Vestfold Næringsliv for Torp (VNFT, renamed Vestfold Flyplassinvest in 1997). This company, along with the county municipality and Stokke Municipality, bought part of AS Sandefjord Lufthavn on 28 April 1987 through a private placement of NOK 18 million. This gave Sandefjord 42.0%, Vestold 35.5%, VNFT 13.5% and Stokke 9.0% ownership.
The new owners concluded that the airport needed a new control tower and a new terminal building. Construction was sent as a public tender in 1987, but the military decided to stop the plans. At this time, a debate about a new location for Oslo Airport had started, with one of the proposals to use Gardermoen, that was one of the two permanently used air stations in Eastern Norway. The air force was afraid that they would have to abandon Gardermoen and relocate to Torp. It would be likely that this would give twenty or forty fighter jets stationed at Torp. The military expansion plans were not in line with the civilian ones. At the same time, the military felt that the existing terminal building was located too close to the arsenal, and a new terminal was needed further away. The airport operators needed additional space. The old terminal had a capacity of 10,000 passengers; in 1984, it served 42,486, and in 1987, 100,907 passengers. By 1990, the issues related to Gardermoen had been resolved, and the military no longer had objections to expanding Torp.
The private placement in 1987 allowed sufficient financing of a new terminal building. It was a 3000 square metres (3,588 sq yd) pointed building that was planned to have the largest possible surface facing the tarmac, to allow the most possible aircraft to park. It was constructed in such a way that it could be easily expanded in both directions. The new terminal was completed in 1991 and cost NOK 47 million. This also included 29700 square kilometres (11,467.2 sq mi) tarmac, and expansion of the taxiway and parking for 300 cars. There was also a need to upgrade the runway, that had had no major maintenance since construction. The end of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
had reduced the threat level and the military no longer saw a need to keep Torp at as high a level. However, the civilian airport operator needed the upgrades. They proposed that the airport operator advance the money, but this was rejected by the Defence Estates Agency. NATO decided that they had too many air stations, and was not willing to pay either. The airport operator still took the chance that the military would repay the advance, since it had done so in similar situation earlier. The runway was upgraded for NOK 10 million in 1989, but only NOK 1 million was refunded in 1993. The first charter flights from Torp were conducted in 1989. In 1992, Saga started flights to Mallorca, as did Vingreiser. These are today part of MyTravel
MyTravel Airways
MyTravel Airways was a United Kingdom scheduled and charter airline with headquarters in Manchester, England. It operated worldwide holiday charter services mainly for its parent company, the MyTravel Group....
. In 1991, Torp Café and Catering started a restaurant in the terminal building and at the same time offered catering to the airlines. The catering was taken over by Select Service Partner in 1998.
Following the Oslo Airport localization controversy
Oslo Airport localization controversy
The location of the airport serving Oslo, Norway, has been the subject of several political debates since 1918. The fist 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...
in the 1980s and early 1990s, parliament decided to locate the new main airport for Eastern Norway at Gardermoen, north of Oslo. This made the main airport for Buskerud, Vestfold and Telemark further from the main airport, and proved to strengthen the regional position of Torp. By 1990, the airport was again losing money, with a loss of NOK 2.1 million, but the passenger numbers were up to 137,279. In 1992, the debate about ownership woke again, this time with the Civil Aviation Administration considering if it should purchase part of all of the airport. In 1992 the airport had 142,983 passengers, and the Civil Aviation Administration estimated that the airport would have 280,000 passengers following the closing of Fornebu in 1998. Local politicians did not want to sell the whole airport to the state, and the Civil Aviation Administration was not interested in purchasing part of the airport, so a sale did not go through.
The air traffic employees in the control tower worked for the Civil Aviation Administration. In October 1991, they went on strike demanding that they receive better working conditions. However, the airport owner and the Civil Aviation Administration could not agree on who had the responsibility to build a new tower. Since 1987, the airport operator kept all landing fees, while the Civil Aviation Administration collects the navigation fees. The air force stated that it had no need for an upgrade to the airport, and was not willing to pay for further investments. The Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications
Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications
The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Transportation and Communications is a Norwegian ministry established in 1946, and is responsible for transportation and communication infrastructure in Norway. It is led by Magnhild Meltveit Kleppa...
stated that the Civil Aviation Administration had previously decided that the state would not give subsidies to Sandefjord Airport, and that such investments must be carried by the operating company. Plans were made, but construction was stopped by the military in 1991. The next plan was launched in 1996, and parliament decided that the state would finance the new tower. However, when construction was to commence in 1998, the ministry decided that the tower instead should be financed by the airport operator. The ministry stated that this was because they did not want to use the limited state funds, that were entirely generated from user fees, to invest in airports that the state had chosen to not operate. It also stated that investments should be concentrated on security rather than increased capacity, and that the airport operating company had sufficient capital to finance the investments. Construction started in 1999 and was finished in 2001. The tower is identical tho the one at Tromsø Airport and cost NOK 40 million.
Low-cost airport
On 1 April 1997, the European aviation market was fully deregulated, and concession was no longer needed to fly internationally between countries within the European Economic AreaEuropean Economic Area
The European Economic Area was established on 1 January 1994 following an agreement between the member states of the European Free Trade Association and the European Community, later the European Union . Specifically, it allows Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway to participate in the EU's Internal...
. The Irish airline Ryanair
Ryanair
Ryanair is an Irish low-cost airline. Its head office is at Dublin Airport and its primary operational bases at Dublin Airport and London Stansted Airport....
wanted to use this to establish several routes from London Stansted Airport
London Stansted Airport
-Cargo:-Statistics:-Infrastructure:-Terminal and satellite buildings:Stansted is the newest passenger airport of all the main London airports. The terminal is an oblong glass building, and is separated in to three areas: Check-in concourse, arrivals and departures...
, including Oslo. They intended to market Sandefjord Airport as Oslo South (later Oslo Torp). Ryanair and Torp had meetings to discuss the matter, but the airport instead wanted SAS and Braathens SAFE to establish routes. However, neither of these were interested in this. To create pressure against Ryanair in the negotiations, the airport operator contacted EasyJet
EasyJet
EasyJet Airline Company Limited is a British airline headquartered at London Luton Airport. It carries more passengers than any other United Kingdom-based airline, operating domestic and international scheduled services on 500 routes between 118 European, North African, and West Asian airports...
, who also considered flying from London to Torp. In the end, Ryanair was the only airline that established itself following the deregulation. The first Ryanair flight, with a Boeing 737-200
Boeing 737
The Boeing 737 is a short- to medium-range, twin-engine narrow-body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has developed into a family of nine passenger models with a capacity of 85 to 215 passengers...
, departed on 3 November 1997. The branding of Torp as Oslo caused a heated discussion between the Civil Aviation Administration, after the International Air Transport Association
International Air Transport Association
The International Air Transport Association is an international industry trade group of airlines headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where the International Civil Aviation Organization is also headquartered. The executive offices are at the Geneva Airport in SwitzerlandIATA's mission is to...
in 1998 placed Sandefjord Airport under the area code for Oslo.
In 1996, Torp had 158,972 passengers and the company lost NOK 1.3 million. In addition, a new private placement was made for NOK 3.5 million by the existing owners. In 1998, the airport had 410,944 passengers and a profit of NOK 349,000. Sandefjord became the country's tenth-largest airport. In 1999, the airport had 684,431 passengers and a profit of NOK 23.4 million. The terminal was expanded to fit 1 million passengers annually, and a new parking house was built. From 1998, Sandefjord Airport strengthened itself in two directions. The commercial interests of Telemark
Telemark
is a county in Norway, bordering Vestfold, Buskerud, Hordaland, Rogaland and Aust-Agder. The county administration is in Skien. Until 1919 the county was known as Bratsberg amt.-Location:...
declared that they would focus on using the larger Sandefjord Airport than Skien Airport, Geiteryggen
Skien Airport, Geiteryggen
Skien Airport, Geiteryggen is an airport located 2.5 km southwest of the city centre of Skien, Norway. Skien Lufthavn AS operates the airport and this company is owned by the local municipality of Skien in the Grenland region. Services are provided by Danish Air Transport to Bergen and Stavanger...
. At the same time, the moving of Oslo Airport from Fornebu to Gardermoen made Torp a more viable regional airport. By 2000, the airport had 758,951 passengers. The duty-free store was operated by Norsk Air, later by Widerøe, until 1998, when it was taken over by SAS Catering
SAS Ground Services
SAS Ground Handling is Europe's third largest full-service provider of aircraft ground handling and airport related services. SAS Ground Handling is the largest ground handling company in Scandinavia....
. From 2006, it was taken over by Jotunfjell Partners. Until 1999, the sheriff's office in Sandefjord was responsible for border control at Torp. From 1999, the airport has been a separate border control office, and by 2004 it had 23 employees. Since 2003, the custom's office for Vestfold is located at Torp, and the Norwegian Customs and Excise Authorities has about fifty employees stationed.
On 3 November 1996, ConTigo
Contigo
Contigo is a 1974 board game designed by Frank Thibault and published by 3M as part of their bookshelf game line. The game is playable by between 2 and 4 players, and is similar to both Mancala and Checkers.-External links:*...
started chater flights flights using Boeing 727
Boeing 727
The Boeing 727 is a mid-size, narrow-body, three-engine, T-tailed commercial jet airliner, manufactured by Boeing. The Boeing 727 first flew in 1963, and for over a decade more were built per year than any other jet airliner. When production ended in 1984 a total of 1,832 aircraft had been produced...
, but terminated services after 22 December. Coast Air
Coast Air
Coast Air AS was a regional airline based at Haugesund Airport, Karmøy in Norway. It was Norway's fourth-largest airline and operated domestic services within Norway, in addition to international services. Routes were concentrated along the West Coast, as well as some public service obligation...
started flights from Sandefjord to Haugesund Airport, Karmøy
Haugesund Airport, Karmøy
Haugesund Airport, Karmøy is the airport serving the city of Haugesund in Norway. It is located on the west side of the island and municipality of Karmøy, southwest of Haugesund. The airport was opened in 1975 and is operated by Avinor....
on 26 October 1998 twice daily. SAS started two daily flights to Copenhagen from 29 March 1999; these were taken over by Widerøe from 1 January 2002. Braathens, along with its partner KLM, started operating from Sandefjord. KLM offered Fokker 70 services to its hub at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol three times daily from 1 May 1999 through their subsidiary KLM Cityhopper
KLM Cityhopper
KLM Cityhopper is the regional subsidiary of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines . The airline, with its head office, the Convair Building, on the grounds of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in Schiphol-Oost, Haarlemmermeer, operates short haul services in and around Europe...
. Braathens started operating services with Boeing 737s to Stavanger and Bergen on 9 May, but terminated the services from 1 November due to low yield. Sun Air of Scandinavia
Sun Air of Scandinavia
Sun Air of Scandinavia is an airline based in Billund, Billund Municipality, Denmark. It is a regional scheduled airline operating a franchise service in British Airways colours. It also offers charter flights, air taxi services, specialist aerial work and aircraft brokerage. Its main base is...
, a franchise of British Airways
British Airways
British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
, started flights from Torp to Billund Airport
Billund Airport
In addition to the scheduled airlines above, several charter airlines serve Billund airport: BH Air, Bulgarian Air Charter, Corendon Airlines, Jettime, Nesma Airlines, Onur Air, Sky Airlines and SunExpress.-Cargo airlines:...
on 1 November 1999, but this was terminated in March 2000. GuardAir
GuardAir
GuardAir AS was a Norwegian airline.The airline was founded in 1992 by Einar Rønnestad, and started with a Cessna 210 that it operated for the insurance company Storebrand to find stolen cars and boats. In 1995, the company bought a Piper PA-31 Navajo, and in 1997 it merged with Wing-Tech, and...
started flights from Torp to Ålesund Airport, Vigra
Ålesund Airport, Vigra
Ålesund Airport, Vigra is an airport which serves the city of Ålesund in Norway and the surrounding regions Sunnmøre, Nordfjord and Romsdal. The airport is located on the island of Vigra in the Giske municipality, northeast of Ålesund city centre and easily accessible through underseas tunnels...
, Kristiansand and Gothenburg
Gothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
in 1998, as well as moving the company's head offices to Torp, but the airline went bankrupt in 2001. Goodjet started flights from Torp to Beauvais-Tillé Airport of Paris on 15 July 2002 using Airbus A320
Airbus A320 family
The Airbus A320 family is a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.Airbus was originally a consortium of European aerospace companies, and is now fully owned by EADS. Airbus's name has been Airbus SAS since 2001...
. The airline terminated all services on 6 December.
On 4 April 2002, Ryanair started flights to Glasgow Prestwick Airport. The same year, the airport expanded the international arrival section, and the airport passed one million annual passengers, and the airport is the seventh largest in the country. The profit had sunk to NOK 9.3 million. In 2003, a new international terminal was opened. On 4 April, Ryanair started a service to Stockholm-Skavsta Airport
Stockholm-Skavsta Airport
Stockholm-Skavsta Airport , or Nyköping Airport is an international airport near Nyköping, Sweden, approximately southwest of Stockholm. It is served by low-cost airlines and cargo operators...
(Now moved to Moss Airport, Rygge
Moss Airport, Rygge
Moss Airport, Rygge is an international airport serving Moss, Oslo and Eastern Norway, located in Rygge. It is both a regional airport for Østfold as well as an airport for low-cost airlines. The airport is located outside Moss and outside Oslo and is owned and operated by the private company...
). In 2004, the airport had 1,084,244 passengers, and a revenue of NOK 163.2 million. A survey conducted in 2004 showed that 64% of the passengers at Torp were tourist rather than business travelers, about twice the level of other airports. The same year, both Widerøe and Ryanair had 450,000 passengers, while KLM had 80,000. The largest destination was London with 250,000 passengers, followed by Copenhagen and Frankfurt with 120,000.
Future plans
In June 2006 the airport decided to invest NOKNorwegian krone
The krone is the currency of Norway and its dependent territories. The plural form is kroner . It is subdivided into 100 øre. The ISO 4217 code is NOK, although the common local abbreviation is kr. The name translates into English as "crown"...
24 million to expand the terminal. The check-in has been a bottle neck, and the expansion will give the airport a capacity of 2.5 million passengers per year. The airport is also working on expanding the taxiway
Taxiway
A taxiway is a path on an airport connecting runways with ramps, hangars, terminals and other facilities. They mostly have hard surface such as asphalt or concrete, although smaller airports sometimes use gravel or grass....
.
Airlines and destinations
Widerøe is the only airline to have an operative base at Torp. The regional airlineRegional airline
Regional airlines are airlines that operate regional aircraft to provide passenger air service to communities without sufficient demand to attract mainline service...
focuses on serving Torp as a premium airline with services to the largest domestic cities, plus an international service to their owner's main hub in Copenhagen. KLM Cityhopper operates three daily feeder services from Torp to KLM's main hub in Amsterdam. The remaining services are provided by the low-cost airlines Ryanair and Wizz Air, that provide a range of international services throughout Europe.
Torp is also the home of Norway's only flying Douglas DC-3
Douglas DC-3
The Douglas DC-3 is an American fixed-wing propeller-driven aircraft whose speed and range revolutionized air transport in the 1930s and 1940s. Its lasting impact on the airline industry and World War II makes it one of the most significant transport aircraft ever made...
. It is operated by Dakota Norway, a non-profit organization, and tours around the area are available at selected days during the summer season.
Facilities
The runway runs due north–south (18/36). It is 2989 by and in asphalt, except both 500 metres (1,640.4 ft) ends that are in concrete. There is a taxiway on the far side of the terminal building. The airport is equipped with instrument landing system category 1Instrument Landing System
An instrument landing system is a ground-based instrument approach system that provides precision guidance to an aircraft approaching and landing on a runway, using a combination of radio signals and, in many cases, high-intensity lighting arrays to enable a safe landing during instrument...
from both ends. The control tower services are operated by Avinor
Avinor
Avinor AS is a state owned limited company in that operates most of the civil airports in Norway. The Norwegian state, via the Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications controls 100 percent of the share capital. Avinor was created on 1 January 2003, by the privatization of the...
. The tarmac has eleven aircraft stands. Deicing
Deicing
For snow and ice control on roadways and similar facilities, see Snow removalDe-icing is defined as removal of snow, ice or frost from a surface...
is available. Widerøe Handling Services
Widerøe
Widerøe's Flyveselskap AS, trading as Widerøe, is a regional airline in Norway and part of the SAS Group. It operates a fleet of 34 Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft , serving 41 domestic and 6 international destinations...
is the only handling agent
Aircraft ground handling
In aviation, aircraft ground handling defines the servicing of an aircraft while it is on the ground and parked at a terminal gate of an airport.-Overview:...
at the airport.
Passenger services & internet access
Exchange office is at the passengers disposal. Cash machines (ATMAutomated teller machine
An automated teller machine or automatic teller machine, also known as a Cashpoint , cash machine or sometimes a hole in the wall in British English, is a computerised telecommunications device that provides the clients of a financial institution with access to financial transactions in a public...
) are also available.
Wireless internet access is available throughout the airport. The service is provided free of charge.
Maintenance
WiderøeWiderøe
Widerøe's Flyveselskap AS, trading as Widerøe, is a regional airline in Norway and part of the SAS Group. It operates a fleet of 34 Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft , serving 41 domestic and 6 international destinations...
has the largest maintenance facility at Torp, providing full maintenance for the airlines own fleet of Dash 8 series 100, 300, and 400 aircraft. Helifly provides maintenance for both aircraft and helicopters. Flyvedlikehold provides maintenance for both aircraft and helicopters, engines, and is a retailer of pilot accessories like headsets, helmets, and so on.
Ground transport
Rail
Sandefjord Airport Station is located on the Vestfold Line, about 3 kilometres (2 mi) from the airport. It is served by regional trains that operate between LillehammerLillehammer Station
Lillehammer is a railway station located in downtown Lillehammer, Norway, on the Dovre Line. The station was opened in 1894 with the construction of the railway between Hamar Station and Tretten Station. The station got a major overhaul before the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer...
-- via Oslo Airport
Oslo Airport Station
Oslo Airport Station , also known as Gardermoen Station, is a railway station located in the airport terminal building of Oslo Airport, Gardermoen in Norway...
and Oslo Central Station -- and Skien
Skien Station
Skien is a railway station located about one kilometer from downtown Skien. The station serves as terminus for the regional trains on Vestfoldbanen from Oslo via Vestfold and for the local trains to Notodden on Bratsbergbanen....
. There are hourly trains in each direction, supplemented by rush-hour trains. Travel time to Oslo is 1 hour 48 minutes, and to Oslo Airport it is 2 hours 23 minutes. A shuttle bus corresponds to all trains during the opening hours of the airport, and a bus trip takes four minutes to the airport terminal. The shuttle bus leaves the airport ten minutes before each train's scheduled departure. The bus is operated by NSB, and is included in the price of the train ticket. There are 42 bus departures each day.
Coach
Torp Expressen is a coach service operated by UniBussUniBuss
Unibuss, formerly known as Nexus Trafikk, is a Norwegian bus company that operates from Oslo, Norway. It is a subsidiary of the municipal Kollektivtransportproduksjon and was created in 2003 so the company could compete for the public service obligation contracts that Oslo was to operate the bus...
to Oslo in correspondence with all of Ryanair's and Wizz Air's flights. Travel time is 1 hour and 50 minutes. Telemarkekspressen, a Norway Bussekspress service operated by Nettbuss
Nettbuss
Nettbuss AS is the largest bus company in Norway owned by the Norwegian State Railways . It was until 2000 known as NSB Biltrafikk. The company has 14 operating subsidiaries throughout Norway and in Denmark and Sweden....
and Telemark Bilruter
Telemark Bilruter
Telemark Bilruter is a Norwegian bus company based in Telemark with headquarters in Seljord. The company operates regional and express buses in addition to trucks. The company has monopoly in most of Telemark, but not the highly populated Grenland area...
, offers coach services to Telemark, including Skien
Skien
' is a city and municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Grenland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Skien. Skien is also the administrative centre of Telemark county....
, Porsgrunn
Porsgrunn
is a town and municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Grenland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Porsgrunn....
, Ulefoss
Ulefoss
Ulefoss is the administrative centre of Nome municipality, Norway. Its population is 2,699.-References:...
, Bø
Bø, Telemark
Bø is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Midt-Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Bø i Telemark. The municipality of Bø was established on 1 January 1838...
and Seljord
Seljord
Seljord is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Vest-Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Seljord...
. The Norway Bussekpress service Sørlandsekspressen operates from a halt on the E18 (not from the airport terminal) to several cities along the South Coast to Kristiansand
Kristiansand
-History:As indicated by archeological findings in the city, the Kristiansand area has been settled at least since 400 AD. A royal farm is known to have been situated on Oddernes as early as 800, and the first church was built around 1040...
. From Østfold
Østfold
is a county in southeastern Norway, bordering Akershus and southwestern Sweden , while Buskerud and Vestfold is on the other side of the bay. The seat of the county administration is Sarpsborg, and Fredrikstad is the largest city.Many manufacturing facilities are situated here. Moss and...
, the service Flybåten Express Østfold–Vestfold operates a coach on the Moss–Horten Ferry
Moss–Horten Ferry
The Moss–Horten Ferry is an automobile ferry on Norwegian National Highway 19 that connects the counties of Østfold and Vestfold at the quays of Moss and Horten. The crossing of Oslofjord is performed with three double-ended ferries operated by Bastø Fosen, making the crossing in 30 minutes, with...
to Torp. This involves a change of coach in Tønsberg. During winter, there are occasional buses that correspond to ski resorts in Gol
Gol, Norway
is a municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Hallingdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Gol. Gol was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838...
, Geilo
Geilo
is a centre in the municipality of Hol in Norway, in the valley of Hallingdal, with around 2300 inhabitants.Geilo is primarily a ski resort town, but also offers summer activities. Geilo is in a valley with mountain ranges on each side. The center of the town lies at 800 meters above sea level, and...
and Hemsedal
Hemsedal
Hemsedal is a municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Hallingdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Trøym. In 1897, Hemsedal was separated from the municipality of Gol to become a municipality of its own.Hemsedal is the...
.
Car
Sandefjord Airport is located 3 kilometres (2 mi) off the European Route E18European route E18
European route E18 runs from Craigavon in the United Kingdom to Saint Petersburg in Russia, passing through Norway, Sweden, and Finland. It is about 1,890 km in length.-United Kingdom:...
. Travel to distance to Sandefjord is 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) and to Oslo is 110 kilometres (68.4 mi). The distance to Oslo Airport, Gardermoen is 167 kilometres (103.8 mi), and to Moss Airport, Rygge is 63 kilometres (39.1 mi) (via the Moss–Horten Ferry). The airport has 460 parking spaces in a garage, 1,720 parking spaces outdoors and 150 short-term places. Parking is operated by EuroPark
EuroPark
EuroPark AS is the Scandinavian division of APCOA Parking with operations in Norway, Sweden and Denmark. It is the largest parking operator in Norway and Denmark...
. Car rental and taxis are available.
Incidents
- Sandefjord was the site of a 1979 Learjet crash, reportedly the result of a pilot distracted by a rowdy party being celebrated by passengers. The cost of the crash was the life of the pilot and five passengers.
- The Torp hostage crisisTorp hostage crisisThe Torp hostage crisis occurred on 28 September 1994 at Sandefjord Airport, Torp, Norway. Two Swedish robbers took two police officers and two pensioners as hostages. The police freed the hostages and killed one of the hostage takers...
occurred on 28 September 1994. Two Swedish robbers took two police officers and two pensioners as hostageHostageA hostage is a person or entity which is held by a captor. The original definition meant that this was handed over by one of two belligerent parties to the other or seized as security for the carrying out of an agreement, or as a preventive measure against certain acts of war...
s. The police freed the hostages and killed one of the hostage takers. It is the only incident in peace time that a Norwegian police chief has given the orders to shoot to kill.
See also
- List of the largest airports in the Nordic countries