From Chile to Norway, these countries are home to the most southern and most northern commercially operated airports in the world. While some may argue other airports could come close, this article will look at those in commercial operation, even if they only offer domestic services.
Starting off in the South
Guardia Marina Zañartu Airport (WPU), which serves Puerto Williams, is located on the north shore of Navarino Island. Located on the southern tip of Chile, the airport serves the Magallanes Region and is positioned across the narrow Beagle Channel from Argentina. With regular scheduled domestic flights to Punta Arenas and occasional charter flights, it is the southernmost airport in the world.
At an elevation of 88 feet (27 meters), the General Directorate of Civil Aviation of Chile (DGAC Chile) operates and manages the airport. Its asphalt runway, 08/26, is 4,724 feet (1,440 meters) long and on a small peninsular parallel to the island’s shore. Arrivals and departures to and from Guardia Marina Zañartu Airport are over the water due to the mountainous terrain to the areas north and south.
More recently, Aerovia DAP acquired a 2011-built DHC-8-402 turboprop aircraft, holding registration CC-DHT. On landing at Guardia Marina Zañartu Airport, the airport encountered a tail strike, and the plane has since been out of service and has remained on the apron at the southern airport.
Currently, the only scheduled flight operations are with Aerovías DAP to Presidente Carlos Ibáñez del Campo International Airport (PUQ) in Punta Arenas. Punta Arenas is commonly known as the gateway to the Patagonia region but is also a key airport for connecting travelers to the British Overseas Territory of the Falkland Islands.
Heading north to Norway
Located just 3.1 miles (five kilometers) northwest of Longyearbyen, on the Norwegian island of Svalbard, is Svalbard Airport (LYR), or in Norwegian: Svalbard lufthavn. It is the northernmost airport in the world, and it has scheduled public flights. First opened in 1975, it replaced a smaller airport that could only fly a few months a year. Today, the airport is owned and operated by state-owned Avinor. While predominantly serving the Norwegian island, it is also a gateway for the Russian settlement of Barentsburg.
Barentsburg is located on Svalbard, which is under Norwegian sovereignty. The Russian government serves its people in Barentsburg through a consulate. The town has a Norwegian postcode and telephone numbers.
Not part of the Schengen Area
While mainland Norway is part of the European Schengen Area, Svalbard is excluded. Exit checks are completed at departing mainland European airports, where a passport, national ID card from an EU/EFTA country, or Norwegian driver’s license (if domestic) is required to travel.
The runway at Svalbard is 8,146 feet (2,483 kilometers) long and equipped with an instrument landing system. No taxiways exist, but the runway is 148 feet (45 meters wide). Underneath the runway is a layer of frost-stable fill, up to 13 feet, one inch (4 meters) deep, to ensure it doesn’t unfreeze in the summer.
Current operators include:
| Arktikugol Charter | Barentsburg, Pyramiden |
|---|---|
| Edelweiss Air | Seasonal charter: Zurich |
| Lufttransport | Charter: Ny-Ålesund, Svea |
| Norwegian Air Shuttle | Oslo, Tromsø |
| Scandinavian Airlines | Oslo, Tromsø |
With both Norwegian and Scandinavian Airlines offering services to the Norwegian mainland, connecting to Svalbard is easy enough, and even given its remoteness, the cost of tickets is still reasonable. Simple Flying checked on the SAS website for dates in a month (November), and a return ticket from Oslo to Svalbard was under $300. This got us thinking: how could you travel from the northernmost commercial airport in the world to the southernmost?
Traveling from North to South
While we acknowledge many ways you could travel between Svalbard and Puerto Williams, Simple Flying highlighted this itinerary, which makes the most of SAS’s joining of SkyTeam. Travel dates are for departure on October 16:
Flight one:
Scandinavian Airlines: Departing from Longyearbyen (Svalbard) at 12:45 onboard SK4491, arriving in Oslo Gardemoen (OSL) at 15:45. Operated by an Airbus A320neo.
Flight two:
Scandinavian Airlines: Departing Oslo Gardemoen at 17:00 on SK839, touching down in Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) at 19:25. Operated by an Airbus A320neo.
Source: GCMap
Flight three:
Air France: Departing Paris CDG at 23:20 on AF406, flying overnight, and touching down in Santiago, Chile (SCL), at 08:45 the following day. Operated by an Airbus A350-900.
Flight four:
LATAM Airlines: Departing Santiago on October 17 at 12:47 on LA87, arriving in Punta Arenas (PUQ) at 15:52. Operated by an Airbus A321-200. An overnight in Punta Arenas would then be required.
Flight five:
Aerovias DAP: Departing from Punta Arenas at 10:00 onboard V5 20 for the one-hour 15-minute journey to Puerto Williams (WPU), landing at 11:15. Operated by DAP’s Beechcarft King Air 300.
History on Aerovias DAP
Based from Punta Areanas, Presidente Carlos Ibáñez del Campo International Airport (PUQ). Aerovias DAP has operated both scheduled and charter flights since its inception in 1980. Today, through its subsidiary Antarctic Airways, the airline carries around 76% of all traffic between Antarctica and America, using the BAe 146-200 and Beechcraft King Air 300, all over 30 years of age.
Source: Simple Flying
