Domestic carrier Air Iceland Connect will suspend flights between Keflavík International Airport and Akureyri Airport in North Iceland. The route is the only domestic link from Keflavík Internationa Airport, meaning passengers will now have to commute to Reykjavík for domestic flights. CEO Árni Gunnarsson tells Túristi that low demand and poor ticket sales are to blame for the decision to suspend the route.
The airline began regular flights between Keflavík and Akureyri in February 2017, offering up to six flights a week. According to Árni, there were hopes that regular year-round flights between Keflavík and Akureyri would encourage foreign tourists to visit regions other than the capital and the South Coast. However, foreign passengers showed little interest in the route; instead it was mainly local passengers travelling abroad that made use of the services.
The company has also decided to suspend flights between Reykjavík and the UK, having offered direct flights to Belfast, North Ireland, and Aberdeen, Scotland. This too, is due to poor ticket sales.
Additionally, Air Iceland Connect operates daily flights between Reykjavík Domestic Airport and the towns of Ísafjörður, Akureyri, and Egilsstaðir, as well as to Greenland and the Faroe Islands.