Union threatens to expand strike by airport personnel

A strike that began at the airport in Brønnøysund in northern Norway earlier this month will spread to other airports around the region if pay demands made to the company supplying ground services aren’t met, threatened the union representing ground personnel at the airport. The conflict is between union LFF (Luftfartens funksjonærforbund) and the local [...]

Oslo’s main airport beats its rivals

Oslo’s main airport at Gardermoen, OSL, has now emerged as the largest in the Nordic region, with more passenger traffic last month than the airports at Copenhagen, Stockholm, Helsinki or Reykjavik. It’s the first time OSL has had more traffic than Copenhagen (CPH). Even though Norway’s population is much smaller than Sweden’s and also smaller [...]

New arrival routines clog Oslo airport

Thousands of airline passengers were hit with travel delays of as much as two hours on Thursday, reportedly because of new routines for airline arrivals into Oslo’s main airport at Gardermoen (OSL). Delays in incoming traffic led to delays for outgoing as well. “The airport is functioning as normal, but the problems are up in [...]

Airports aim to relieve congestion

Avinor, the state agency in charge of Norway’s airports, confirmed on Tuesday that it plans to lease more air traffic controllers from a Swedish aviation consulting agency, in the hopes of avoiding another shortage of staff in the tower this summer. Airline passengers, meanwhile, face doing more of the tasks on the ground themselves. A [...]

Silent alarm rang at Oslo airports

The public wasn’t informed, but all three airports serving the greater Oslo area – Norway’s gateway airport OSL at Gardermoen plus Rygge at Moss and Torp at Sandefjord – were put under high alert for around a week last fall because of  threatened terrorist attacks. Only now are Norwegian authorities confirming the terror alarm. “It’s [...]

Dogs detect the scent of money

In what may be a sign of Norway’s increasing affluence, Norwegian customs officials are now using dogs to sniff out cash smugglers. The dogs are specially trained to detect the scent of money, and are bringing in substantial revenues to Customs, as well as uncovering organized crime networks. Three specially trained dogs are now working [...]

Fog lifts, easing holiday flight delays

Airlines serving Oslo’s main airport at Gardermoen were taking off mostly on schedule Friday morning, following widespread delays caused by a frosty fog that settled over the airport just as the holiday travel rush was setting in. Passengers were urged, though, to brace for crowds and more challenging weather throughout the weekend. Norway’s gateway airport, [...]

Strike averted, but airport delays can continue

Oslo’s main airport at Gardermoen along with airports in Trondheim and Bergen were spared new strike action by ground personnel on Thursday, but air traffic control delays continue to loom because of short staffing in the towers. More than 200 members of the labour union Handel og Kontor were poised to strike over pay and [...]

Air traffic controllers’ leader resigns under pressure

The controversial leader of Norway’s air traffic controllers, Åge Røde, has decided to resign as his colleagues’ representative, after state aviation agency Avinor went to court to get him fired. Avinor has claimed that Røde was behind the work slowdowns last summer that delayed or cancelled flights, stranded many passengers and led to huge losses [...]

Airlines getting back on schedule after fueling trouble at OSL

Airlines serving Oslo’s main airport at Gardermoen were getting back on schedule Wednesday morning after problems with the airport’s fueling facility caused major disruption late Tuesday afternoon and evening. Some flights still had to be cancelled, though. “Traffic is returning to normal,” airport spokesman Vegar Gystad told Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK). “Some aircraft and crew had [...]

Ryanair faces case in Norwegian court

Low-fare Irish airline Ryanair must, for the first time, defend itself in a Norwegian court and prove that its firing of a Norwegian-based worker was in line with tough Norwegian labour law. The case may have international consequences for the unconventional carrier, which also has experienced technical difficulty recently on two of its landings in [...]

Airlines demand compensation for air traffic control delays

Several airlines serving Norwegian airports are collectively demanding NOK 100 million in compensation from state aviation authority Avinor. They claim they lost heavily when they suffered delays and cancellations because of a lack of air traffic controllers on the job last summer. Statistics from the European agency Eurocontrol showed that Oslo’s main airport at Gardermoen [...]

Lack of control over air traffic control

There’s no end in sight to the delays at Norwegian airports that have frustrated airlines and passengers alike all summer. Airlines are demanding reforms within air traffic control systems both in Norway and elsewhere in Europe, while the air traffic controllers complain of excessive overtime needed to offset personnel shortages. Avinor, the state aviation authority [...]

Airlines brace for more delays

Airlines serving Norwegian airports, especially the country’s main gateway at Gardermoen north of Oslo, were warning of another weekend of delays because of inadequate staffing among air traffic controllers. Norwegian Air is especially unhappy, after claiming it has lost millions on airport trouble in recent weeks. Norwegian isn’t alone, and representatives of other airlines including [...]

Airline passengers warned of delays

UPDATED: A lack of air traffic controllers on duty in southern Norway has led to delayed flights in and out of OSL Gardermoen, Oslo’s main airport and widely viewed as the gateway to Norway. Staffing shortages forced some airports to close at various points earlier this week, and new delays loom this weekend. Avinor is [...]

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