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Denmark revokes Nuuk airport’s international flight authorization, affecting Iqaluit travellers

Passengers expecting to fly to Iqaluit from Nuuk Wednesday were waiting to find out how they are going to get to Canada after Denmark revoked the Greenland city airport’s security authorization for international flights.

Air Greenland announced the suspension in a travel advisory on its website Wednesday.

The Danish Civil Aviation and Railway Authority said in a news release, which was published in Danish, that Nuuk airport doesn’t meet “the necessary high level of security in the security area.”

“As airport security involves a high level of confidentiality, we cannot go into detail about which security measures are currently lacking,” said Christian Vesterager, the authority’s deputy director, in the news release.

“For the passengers in Nuuk, the changed security level means that for a period it will only be possible to fly to and from destinations in Greenland.”

An Air Greenland flight was still set to depart from Iqaluit to Nuuk Wednesday at 3:15 p.m. ET., according to flight information available on the airline’s website.

At Nuuk’s new airport terminal on June 26, a customs agent, seen leaning on the counter, scans the passports of passengers arriving from Iqaluit. (File photo by Jeff Pelletier)

A new airport terminal in Nuuk is under construction, with work expected to be completed in the fall. A new customs area is part of the plans.

Despite being the capital and largest city of Greenland, Nuuk is not home to the country’s main international airport. Kangerlussuaq is Greenland’s international hub.

Until Wednesday, Nuuk’s airport was an international destination for flights coming from Iqaluit and Iceland.

Iqaluit resident Sandi Chan was one of four passengers on a charter to Nuuk Aug. 11, which was organized by the Qaujigiartiit Health Research Centre.

Chan planned to spend a short vacation in Nuuk with a friend from Saskatoon, with plans to return to Iqaluit with Air Greenland on Wednesday.

Chan said she didn’t speak to any customs or immigration agents upon landing.

“I didn’t show my passport to anyone,” Chan said in a message to Nunatsiaq News.

Sandi Chan of Iqaluit is waiting to find out how she’ll be getting home from Nuuk after the abrupt suspension of international flights from the Greenland capital’s airport. (Photo courtesy of Sandi Chan)

“We went from the plane to the taxi. No one pointed us where to go and the hallway and doors seemed open.”

She added, “Maybe they forgot to direct us. I will happily get my passport stamped!”

Chan said she found out at 10 a.m. local time Wednesday, which is 7 a.m. in Iqaluit, that her flight was cancelled, and now she’s waiting to find out how she’s getting home.

“[Air Greenland] answered the phone quickly, but no plans about which flight to take, or if they can book us into a hotel if there is no flight today,” Chan said.

“I believe they are still co-ordinating.”

Brenda Koenig and Drew Phillips, tourists from Illinois with plans to travel to Nuuk, said they heard about the airport issues hours before their flight.

“So we jumped in the car and went to the airport,” Koenig said after she had checked in for the flight.

The pair said airport staff told them the Air Greenland plane would pick up passengers from Iqaluit despite the issues. However, the plane will arrive empty, as Nuuk passengers were unable to depart for “security reasons.”

“So then of course, when someone says that, you think of all sorts of like crazy scenarios, you know, terrorism, or whatever,” Koenig said.

“But they explained to us here, ‘No, your flight’s still going out.’”

According to Air Greenland, the issues should be resolved by Aug. 21, the date of the next scheduled flight from Nuuk to Iqaluit.

Koenig and Phillips say they are relying on the accuracy of this information.

“Otherwise we’ll be stuck in Nuuk. That would be a weird thing,” Phillips said.

News from © Canadian Press Enterprises Inc., 2023