Haugesund Airport, Storesundsskjær () was a

water aerodrome An aerodrome, airfield, or airstrip is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for public or private use. Aerodromes inc ...

which served the town of Haugesund in

Rogaland Rogaland () is a Counties of Norway, county in Western Norway, bordering the North Sea to the west and the counties of Vestland to the north, Telemark to the east and Agder to the east and southeast. As of 1 January 2024, it had a population of 49 ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

, from 1936 to 1956. The

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...

consisted of a barge anchored at Midtre Storesundsskjær in Haugesund's port. Affixed was a floating dock and a terminal building.

Det Norske Luftfartsrederi Aktieselskapet Det Norske Luftfartsrederi or DNL was Norway's first scheduled airline, founded in 1918 and operated services between Bergen, Haugesund and Stavanger in 1920. It operated Supermarine Channel flying boats. It was also one of the seve ...

flew to Haugesund in 1920. The service was resumed by

Widerøe Widerøes Flyveselskap AS, trading as Widerøe, is a Norwegian airline, and the largest regional airline operating in the Nordic countries. The airline's fleet of 48 aircraft includes 45 De Havilland Dash 8 turboprops as well as 3 Embraer 1 ...

in 1934, although it was taken over by

Norwegian Air Lines Det Norske Luftfartselskap A/S (literally "The Norwegian Aviation Company") or DNL, trading internationally as Norwegian Air Lines, was an airline and flag carrier of Norway. Founded in 1927, it operated domestic and international routes from 19 ...

(DNL) the following year. Their larger

Junkers Ju 52 The Junkers Ju 52/3m (nicknamed ''Tante Ju'' ("Aunt Ju") and ''Iron Annie'') is a transport aircraft that was designed and manufactured by German aviation company Junkers. First introduced during 1930 as a civilian airliner, it was adapted int ...

s caused the municipality to replace a

buoy A buoy (; ) is a buoyancy, floating device that can have many purposes. It can be anchored (stationary) or allowed to drift with ocean currents. History The ultimate origin of buoys is unknown, but by 1295 a seaman's manual referred to navig ...

with a permanent airport. From 1940 to 1945 the airport was used by the

Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...

. DNL resumed flights from 1946 through 1949. Widerøe then resumed them in 1950. Finally,

West Norway Airlines Vestlandske Luftfartsselskap A/S, trading internationally as West Norway Airlines, was an airline based in Bergen, Norway, which operated from 1946 to 1957. The company operated almost entirely a fleet of seaplanes out of its base at Bergen Airp ...

flew from 1952 through 1956.

History

The first aviation services in Haugesund was in 1920, when Det Norske Luftfartsrederi commenced a coastal services from Stavanger via Haugesund to Bergen. Using a Supermarine Channel, the airline failed to make a profit and only operated for a single season. Services resumed on 17 June 1934, when Widerøe was granted a concession for a coastal route from Oslo to Haugesund. The route was kept operation through a state grant of 17,000

Norwegian krone The krone (, currency sign, abbreviation: kr (also NKr for distinction); ISO 4217, code: NOK), plural ''kroner'', is the currency of the Kingdom of Norway (including List of possessions of Norway, overseas territories and dependencies). It was t ...

per year. Flight time to Oslo was five hours and ten minutes. It was flown using a Waco Cabin with capacity for three passengers. The aerodrome in Haugesund initially consisted of a buoy anchored in the port.

Ground handling In aviation, aircraft ground handling or ground operations defines the servicing of an aircraft while it is on the ground and (usually) parked at a terminal gate of an airport. Overview Many airlines subcontract ground handling to airport ...

was carried out by Paulsen & Semb. The following season the route was taken over by Norwegian Air Lines. They had received a monopoly on all air services and bought a controlling stake in Widerøe. DNL introduced the eleven-passenger

on the route, which ran from Oslo via Arendal, Kristiansand, Stavanger and Haugesund to Bergen. For this the simple buoy would no longer suffice, and the port authority commenced planning of a proper water aerodrome. As an interim solution a floating dock was installed.Reitan: 13 DNL Ju 52 in Haugesund 2

As the increased traffic caused the need for a permanent aerodrome, Haugesund Municipality approved the construction of such a facility in 1935. A barge was anchored up at Midtre Storesundsskjær and a floating dock fastened to it. This also received a control and operations building. Construction cost NOK 15,000, which was financed by the municipality and various municipal agencies. The services only flew five months during the summer. The last flight before the break-out of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

took place on 2 September 1939. During the

German occupation of Norway The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until th ...

from 1940 to 1945 the Luftwaffe used the airport for Ju 52 transport seaplanes. DNL resumed flights out of Haugesund on 6 October 1946, this time with two daily round trips. DNL flew until the end of the 1949 summer season using the Ju 52. Widerøe took over the route for the 1950 season, using an eight-passenger

Noorduyn Norseman The Noorduyn Norseman, also known as the C-64 Norseman, is a Canadian single-engine bush plane designed to operate from unimproved surfaces. Distinctive stubby landing gear protrusions from the lower fuselage make it easily recognizable. Intro ...

. They failed to get ends to meet and operated only for a single season. West Norway Airlines resumed the route in 1952. They used a

Short Sealand The Short SA.6 Sealand was a light commercial amphibious aircraft designed and produced by Short Brothers. It was sized to accommodate between five and seven passengers as well as to suit the general overseas market in territories with suitable ...

flying boat and flew from Stavanger via Haugesund to Bergen, and continued northwards to

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...

. The airline continued to operate on the route until 29 September 1956. Thereafter there were no regular flights out of the water aerodrome, and Haugesund was without scheduled services until the opening of

Haugesund Airport, Karmøy Haugesund Airport (; ) is an international airport serving the Haugaland region in Norway. It is located just outside the town of Haugesund on the Helganes peninsula on the island of Karmøy in the municipality of Karmøy, Rogaland county, Norway ...

on 8 April 1975.Reitan: 27

Facilities

The airport was located at Midtre Storesundsskjær in the port of Haugesund and was owned an operated by the municipal Haugesund Port Authority. The aerodrome's facilities consisted of an anchored barge to which a floating dock was attached. On the barge there was a small wooden terminal building which also acted as an operations center and control tower. Electric and telephone lines were laid to the barge. Transport to land took place by boat. The airport was only in operation during the summer, typically for

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Haugesund Airport, Storesundsskjaer Airports in Rogaland Defunct airports in Norway Water aerodromes in Norway Luftwaffe airports in Norway Haugesund 1936 establishments in Norway 1956 disestablishments in Norway Airports established in 1936 Military installations in Rogaland