Oslo Gardermoen

A Legacy of Private Aviation

OSL at Gardermoen originated as a Norwegian military camp in 1740 (it was called Fredericksfeldt until 1788). It was initially used by cavalry, then by dragoons, and later by riding marines. In 1834 it was used by infantry, and from 1860 by artillery forces. At this time, barracks and stalls were erected until insulated buildings came into use in 1900. Aviation began in 1912, and the base was used for military flights. During WWII, the base was taken by the German Luftwaffe, who built hangars and constructed two 6,600-foot runways. After the war, the Norwegian Air Force was again in control of the base, and three fighters and one transport squadron were stationed therein. OSL’s civil aviation origins begin as a reliever airport for Oslo Airport, Fornebu, in fog times. Moreover, when a longer runway was installed at Fornebu from 1946 to 1952, OSL has used to service intercontinental flights. The airport was also used for general aviation and for training commercial pilots. There were some other stints of scheduled commercial flights, namely when SAS could not use the runway at Fornebu for its Sud Aviation Caravelle aircraft. As such, they employed the OSL runway from 1960 until the runway at Fornebu was extended in 1962. As Fornebu was constrained from further growth (as it was located on a peninsula close to large residential areas), most charter traffic was moved to OSL in 1972. A hangar was converted into a terminal to serve the incoming traffic better. By 1983 all charter operations were at OSL, with 750,000 passengers served that year. Moreover, in 1985 the runway measured 10,010 feet. It had become apparent at that time that by 1988 all international traffic would have to be moved to OSL. There had been various proposals over the year for constructing a new airport to serve Oslo, but they all fell through for various reasons. As such, on August 8th, 1992, the Norwegian Parliament passed legislation allowing for the construction of a modern airport at Gardermoen, along with a high-speed railway that would have access to the airport. Construction and operation were to be undertaken by the Civil Airport Administration (known today as Avinor). Initially, the military air station was torn down and rebuilt, which on the one hand, reduced the total building area, but on the other, provided a more functional design. On August 13th, 1994, construction of the new civilian airport began. Whereas the west runway was already in place (built by the Air Force in 1989), the east runway needed to be constructed. On October 7th, 1998, the last flights to Fornebu took place, and the next day Gardermoen officially opened. The airlines built their facilities at OSL. The 590,000-square-foot SAS complex included a technical base, cabin storage, garages, and cargo terminals. Braethens facilities included a 97,000-square-foot hangar capable of storing six aircraft (their technical base was already at Stavanger Airport, Sola). As for the railway, the 40-mile Gardermoen Line connects to Oslo Central Station, a trip that takes the high-speed train a total of 19 minutes to complete. Moreover, the main highway from Oslo to Gardermoen is European Route E6, which was expanded and connected to the airport. The first scheduled flights at OSL were via Color Air utilizing Boeing 737-300 jets (they only operated until October 1999, when they filed for bankruptcy). Initially, there were weather issues at OSL (which also plagued other Norwegian airports), namely fog and freezing rain, which could damage aircraft engines. Due to one of Norway’s largest underground water systems beneath the airport, deicing fluids is restricted. As such, on January 18th, 2006, an Infratek deicing system was set up (it ultimately proved unsuccessful in reducing chemical deicers by 90%). There had been various attempts to establish a transatlantic flight from OSL. Initial service had been by Northwest Airlines, first in 1987 with flights to New York-JFK (continuing to Memphis International Airport and Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport), and later in 1999 directly to Minneapolis-Saint Paul. This route only lasted several months. In October 2001, SAS discontinued its only flight to Newark Airport after 9/11. The route was reestablished in 2004 by both SAS and Continental Airlines (now United Airlines) via the Airbus A330 and the Boeing 757-200, respectively. United discontinued winter service on the route in 2015 and discontinued the route entirely in 2017. On the other hand, SAS also added direct service to Miami in 2016. The first Asian airline to serve OSL was Pakistan International Airlines in 1999, with flights to Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad. A new 7,000-square-foot VIP terminal opened in 2012 for exclusive use by the royal family, the prime minister, and foreign heads of state.