The government of Greenland, in collaboration with Kalaallit Airports concessionaire, confirmed the inauguration of the expansion of Nuuk International Airport on November 28, 2024. At the same time, Air Greenland has announced that it will inaugurate the new runway with its Airbus A330neo, named “Tuukkaq.”
The expansion of Nuuk airport is part of an ambitious government plan to improve the island’s airport infrastructure, complying with current safety standards. This project also includes the construction of new facilities and the expansion of key aerodromes such as Nuuk, Ilulissat, and Qaqortoq.
Kalaallit Airports International A/S and Munck Gruppen A/S have formalized the general contract for the construction of new runways at Ilulissat (JAV) and Nuuk (GOH) airports. The works, which began in the fourth quarter of 2020 with a completion date in 2024, aim to strengthen the tourist infrastructure.
Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, goes international
The improved infrastructure of Nuuk airport includes an extended runway from 1,500 to 2,200 meters in length and 45 meters wide, two taxiways, an independent control tower, a new terminal with platform, and service buildings.
The opening of Nuuk’s runway is scheduled for November 28, 2024. The new terminal, with a capacity for 400 arriving and 400 departing passengers simultaneously, will be inaugurated in May 2024.
Preparations by Air Greenland with the Airbus A330neo
Air Greenland has officially confirmed that its newly incorporated Airbus A330-800, nicknamed “Tuukkaq” and with a capacity for 305 passengers, will operate in Nuuk. Jacob Nitter Sørensen, CEO of Air Greenland, stated that this aircraft will be the first to land and take off in Nuuk on November 28, 2024.
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Sørensen highlighted the symbolism of having a distinctive flagship aircraft inaugurate the runway, replicating the 1979 ceremony with a DASH-7. Greenland anticipates that Nuuk, with a population of 56 thousand, will become its new national and international operations center.
Greenland currently has two airports to maintain international connectivity: Kangerlussuaq (SFJ), Narsarsuaq (UAK), and occasionally Ilulissat. Air Greenland operates from the first two airports to Norway and Denmark with Airbus A330 and Boeing 737 aircraft included in wet-leasing, and from there connects to other destinations of the airline.
