April 13, 2026, 11:43April 13, 2026, 11:43
On April 11, a pilot from the Icelandic airline Icelandair had his last flight before retirement. He flew a passenger plane from Frankfurt to Keflavik Airport. Keflavik Airport is the largest airport in Iceland and handles most international flights.
During the flight he flew over the Vestmannaeyjar archipelago, which lies around 30 kilometers off the coast of Iceland. The pilot flew over one of the villages on the island at an altitude that was far too low. Apparently this is the village where the man grew up.
Video: watson/nina bürge
As the airline told Icelandic media, the maneuver was neither registered nor approved. The residents of the village were frightened by the low-level flight because it could cause a lot of noise and possibly slight shaking of houses.
The airline Icelandair has announced that it is taking the incident seriously. They will investigate the flight accordingly and check whether any safety measures were violated.
According to data from “Flightradar24”, the Boeing 757 was around 1,357 feet above the ground over the archipelago. This corresponds to around 413 meters. The machine had a speed of 144 knots, which is around 266 kilometers per hour. It is not known whether these are actually the lowest values at which the pilot flew.
In aviation there are rules that prescribe the minimum altitude of aircraft. It is not yet known whether these rules were violated during the flight. After the flight, the airline Icelandair apologized to the islanders for the low flight and the shock. (nib)
You might also be interested in these articles: