A severe Arctic cold snap has brought air travel to a standstill at Kittilä Airport in Finnish Lapland, leaving thousands of international tourists stranded amid the most extreme winter conditions in recent memory. The airport operator, Finavia, confirmed the complete cancellation of all outbound flights on Sunday as temperatures plummeted to a bone-chilling -35°C, with forecasts predicting a further drop to -39°C on Monday.
The meteorological phenomenon has created uniquely hazardous operational conditions. The extreme cold has rendered standard aircraft de-icing procedures ineffective while causing critical ground equipment, including maintenance and refueling systems, to freeze solid. According to Finavia’s statement to public broadcaster Yle, heightened atmospheric moisture has compounded the crisis by creating dangerously slippery frost layers on aircraft surfaces and runways.
This deep freeze has primarily affected travelers from major European hubs including London, Bristol, Manchester, Paris, and Amsterdam, many of whom journeyed to Lapland for winter sports and aurora viewing. While the region is renowned for its cold winters, current temperatures are notably severe—typically averaging -14°C with occasional dips to -30°C, rather than the sustained -35°C to -39°C now being recorded.
The transportation disruption extends beyond air travel, with Fintraffic authorities warning of perilously icy road conditions throughout the region. In a concerning incident reported by Yle, a bus carrying Ukrainian passengers skidded into a ditch on Sunday morning, though fortunately no serious injuries were reported.
This Arctic blast forms part of a broader pattern of severe winter weather sweeping across Northern Europe. Concurrent storms have caused significant disruption in the UK, France, and Germany, including a tragic fatality in England when a tree fell on a caravan and widespread power outages affecting approximately 100,000 French households.