The Airport, with IATA and ICAO codes OSL and ENGM, is located a good 50 kilometers northeast of Oslo in a flat, rural area.
The site has been used since 1740—initially with tents, and from 1860 with permanent buildings—as barracks with a parade ground for the Norwegian Army. The first aircraft landed in 1912. During the Second World War, the German Wehrmacht built two intersecting 2,000-meter runways and hangars here.
After the war, the airfield continued to be used militarily by the Norwegian Air Force (Luftforsvaret) with fighter jets and transporters from almost all generations, dating back to the beginning of the Cold War. To this day, the “Luftforsvaret” maintains a station at the site: the 335th Squadron flies the Lockheed C-130 “Hercules.”
The Transition to a Civil Hub
In parallel, Braathens SAFE built the first maintenance hangar in 1946. Gardermoen became the alternate airport for the then-capital airport, Fornebu (located only seven kilometers west of the center at Lysakerfjord), and was mainly used for training flights and General Aviation. Starting in 1972, the first airlines moved from Fornebu to Gardermoen due to capacity bottlenecks, a lack of expansion options, and emerging noise protection issues. From 1983, restrictions were tightened so that SAS and Braathens, which had remained in Fornebu, also moved to Gardermoen. In 1985, the North-South runway (today’s 01L/19R) was extended to 3,050 meters. That same year, it became clear that from 1988, all airlines would have to move from Fornebu to Gardermoen.
After two other locations in Hobøl and Hurum were finally rejected for a new international capital airport—primarily due to frequent poor weather—a construction and operating company was founded in 1992 for the erection and operation of the “modern” Gardermoen.
Construction work, which included the airport and the high-speed rail line, began in 1994. It was estimated to require 13,000 (!) man-years of labor. 220 companies from all required trades were contracted. On October 7, 1998, 300 employees and 500 truckloads of equipment moved from Fornebu to Gardermoen. The new airport, including the newly built West Runway 01R/19L, opened on October 8, 1998, under the name “Gardermoen.” Fornebu was closed on the same day.
The asphalt runways 01L/19R (3,600 x 45 m) and 01R/19L (2,950 x 45 m) allow for 80 aircraft movements per hour. There are currently no plans for further expansion. The distance between the runways is 2,090 meters—therefore, independent, simultaneous operation is possible. This is why approach charts do not show “simultaneous approaches” with a large solid arrow for the target runway and a smaller, transparent direction arrow for the parallel runway:
The “division” of the site is illustrated by the color-coded ground map from eAIP Norge.
The runways were equipped as follows:
| Runway | ILS | VOR | RNP | ALS | SFL | TDZ | PAPI |
| 01L | CAT IIIB | Yes | Yes | Calvert High (HIALS-II) | Yes | Yes | Left |
| 01R | CAT IIIB | – | Yes | Calvert High (HIALS-II) | Yes | Yes | Left |
| 19L | CAT IIIB | – | Yes | Calvert High (HIALS-II) | Yes | Yes | Left |
| 19R | CAT IIIB | Yes | Yes | Calvert High (HIALS-II) | Yes | Yes | Left |
The DVOR/DME GARDERMOEN GRM 115.95 MHz is located directly west of 01L. The VOR has no function for lower or upper airways in the region or for arrival/departure routes. It serves merely as an airport “locator” and non-precision approach aid for 01L and 19R.
Terminal and Infrastructure
The terminal covers 265,000 m², consisting of the central area, “West Wing,” “East Wing,” and the “South Pier” south of the West Wing. 53 parking positions were built at the terminal, twelve of them without jetways. The “South Pier” has eight parking spaces without passenger bridges. Remote from the terminal, there are twelve further parking positions.
In the cargo area, six parking spaces were designated, 20 for General Aviation west of 01L, and eight on the military apron. Parking spaces are available for SAS maintenance operations.
At all terminal positions, electronic-optical Visual Docking Guidance Systems (VDGS) of the type Safedock T1 from ADB Safegate were installed and have been in use since 2017. The exception is position 79, which features a more modern Safedock Flex introduced in mid-2022:
For the Airbus A380, parking positions 52, 80, 171L, 201L, 203L can be used, similar to the real-world counterpart. For the Antonov AN-124, positions 201L, 203L, or (after consultation with the Air Force) the military apron can be used. For the Boeing 747-8i, positions 52, 80, 171L, 201L, 203L and the military apron are available.
A unique selling point of the airport are the “Release Points”: marked on the ground maps as arrows (eAIP Norge) or circles (Jeppesen) with numbers, these points mark the spots where pushback truck drivers park the aircraft they have moved so that they can taxi away as quickly as possible:
Current satellite images show the “Release Points” in the form of two white lines across the yellow taxiway markings on taxiways D, K2, N, R, and Q (where there is also an additional orange and blue taxiway line).
The airport can be reached via European roads E16 and E6, high-speed trains called “Flytoget” on the “Gardermobane,” and regional trains from Oslo. The station is located above ground directly southwest of the terminal. The double-track line runs under the terminal and apron and emerges back into daylight outside the airport perimeter. The high-speed line ends in Eidsvoll, about 15 kilometers northeast of the airport. The line went into operation on the day the airport opened. On the airside, around 11,500 parking spaces were built. Several car rental companies operate on-site.
11 airlines currently serve around 150 destinations in more than 46 countries according to eeob Flight Information; around 210 aircraft take off daily. Operator Avinor reports the following figures for 2025:
- Passengers: 27,072,860
- Cargo Tonnage: 189,133
- Flights: 224,416
Artworks
The airport has been equipped with several works by various artists. In the terminal, there is a permanent exhibition of works by Edvard Munch and sculptures by Per Inge Bjørlo. To the right of the terminal stands “Utkast” by Kåre Groven—the silhouetted sculpture of a person about to throw a paper airplane. The artwork was created in 1987 and originally placed at Fornebu Airport before being moved to Gardermoen.
At the intersection of E6 and E16 stands “The Peace Star” by Vebjørn Sand since 2000. It is a 45-meter high icosahedron representing the Supernova 1604 (“Kepler’s Supernova”) and was dedicated to the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in 1999.
Information & Museums
- Wikipedia (EN): Oslo Airport, Gardermoen
- Aviation Museum: West of 01L is the Norwegian Armed Forces Aircraft Collection (Forsvarets Flysamling Gardermoen).
- Race Track: East of 19R is the Gardermoen Raceway with a go-kart track and a 1,200-meter speed track.
Simulation
Aerosoft first released Oslo-Gardermoen in 2004 as part of “Scandinavian Airports 1” for FS2004, created by Sim-Wings. In 2010, Aerosoft released a version for FSX, and in December 2013, the “Mega Airport Oslo v2” for FSX, FSX:SE, and P3D v3. In May 2017, a version for X-Plane 10 and 11 followed. JustSim released its version for MSFS 2020 in December 2022.
In March 2023, Orbx released a version by Finn Hansen and Jakub Lukaszewski. In late April 2024, Aerosoft presented a version by Jo Erlend Sund for MSFS 2020 and 2024.
On March 7, 2026, Orbx introduced their updated scenery, based on the MSFS 2020 version, by Finn Hansen and Jakub Lukaszewski for MSFS 2024. Let’s fly there…
This scenery is available for new customers here for around 18 Euro: Orbx ENGM Oslo-Gardermoen MSFS2024
Buyers of the previous version receive the revised airport for free. Orbx Central is required for download and installation.
The airport blends seamlessly into its surroundings. Comparisons with current satellite images show all buildings, runways, taxiways, and aprons are plausibly textured and in the correct place. The two artworks mentioned above have also been implemented. The three different types of jetways—with transparent glass where applicable—are animated and dock to both player and AI aircraft. The installed VDGS are from Nool, and the free plugin for MSFS 2020 and MSFS 2024 is required for them to function.
The terminal is worth seeing and well-furnished, as is the landside with the access road, the terrace-style parking garage, and the 91-meter high tower. The station is present, featuring a detailed model of a Stadler FLIRT train (NSB Class 74).
GSX Pro Profile
Finn Hansen does not include a GSX Pro profile, but recommends the one by “Aanerud” on Flightsim.to. “Northwind” has also posted a profile there.
Identified Issues
- Missing approach light flashers (“Rabbits”) on all runways.
- Gardermobane trains only run in the northwest of the site.
- Two of the four tracks at the airport station are overlaid by a ground texture.
- Almost no night lighting on the aprons, especially noticeable at the terminal.
- No fire engines in front of the two fire stations.
- No buildings at the southern part of the Gardermoen Raceway.
The designers have been informed and intend to address the lighting issues.
Conclusion
Well done, Finn and Jakub… Gardermoen has turned out attractively with many interesting, well-made details. The fact that existing customers receive the site free of charge is a credit to Orbx. The 18 Euro for new customers is more than fair for an airport of this size!
Bert Groner March 2026
Airport Comparison: Aerosoft vs. Orbx
Before questions arise: The airports by Sund and Hansen/Lukaszewski are on par with each other “within a few millimeters.” However, the AI from Google and many users at FlightSim.to agree that Sund’s scenery is slightly better.
Personally, I rate Jo Erlend Sund’s scenery the same way: Some details are better worked out, the night lighting is sufficiently bright, there is continuous rail traffic, and fire engines are stationed in front of both fire houses.
A GSX Pro profile for the Aerosoft version is available from JBXProfiles. The scenery also has a configurator. The “Rabbits” are unfortunately also missing at this airport, though Jo Erlend Sund intends to fix this in an upcoming update and install the Safedock Flex at position 79.
Navigation Charts
Payware: Navigraph (Subscription model)
Freeware: Avinor – eAIP Norge
