Andenes, Norway

Andenes is a village and former municipality in the Vesterlen district of Nordland county,
Norway. The municipality encompassed the northern part of the island of Andya in the presentday municipality of Andy.
The village of Andenes is the northernmost settlement of the island of Andya and in Nordland
county. To the east is the island of Senja (in Troms county), and to the west the endless horizon
of the North Atlantic Ocean. Andenes is the administrative centre of the municipality of Andy.
Andenes Lighthouse sits along the harbor and can be seen for long distances. Andya Airport,
Andenes is located just south of the village, off of Norwegian County Road 82.
The 1.73-square-kilometre (430-acre) village of Andenes has a population (2013) of 2,694. The
population density of the village is 1,557 inhabitants per square kilometre (4,030/sq mi).[2]

View of the local fishing boats

History: Andenes was already an important fishing village during the Iron Age. By the early
1900s, it had become one of the largest fishing ports in Norway.
The municipality of Andenes was established on 1 January 1924 when it was separated from
Dverberg municipality. Initially, Andenes had 2,213 residents. On 1 January 1964, Andenes was
merged with Dverberg and Bjrnskinn municipalities to create the new municipality of Andy.
In the early 1980s the population of the village of Andenes was 3,770, which made it the largest
village in Vesterlen. The downsizing of Andya Air Station and general population
centralization in Norway has led to a dramatic decline in inhabitants over the last 20 years.

Name: The Old Norse form of the name was Andarnes (from originally Amdarnes). The first
element is the genitive case of md (the old name of the island Andya) and the last element is
nes which means "headland".

Air Station: The construction of Andya Air Station was commissioned in 1952 and funded in
large part by NATO. It was to be situated between Haugnes and Andenes. A DC-3 Dakota of the

Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) undertook the first landing on 17 September 1954. The air
station however was not fully operative until 15 September 1957.
In 1961, the 333 Squadron was moved from Sola Air Station to Andya with their Grumman
HU-16 Albatross. In 1969, these were replaced by the Lockheed P-3 Orion. In 1989, the
Lockheed P-3C Orion replaced the aging P-3Bs. However, two of the newest P-3Bs were
converted to P-3Ns and fly missions for the Norwegian Coast Guard. Besides fisheries, Andya
Air Station has been the largest workplace in Andy since the 1970s.
In the autumn of 2011, an Orion aircraft from Andenes patrolled the Indian Ocean from a
forward base in the Seychelles, supported by 44 personnel and contributing 29 patrols of 810
hours to NATO's anti-piracy operation.[5] The flights led directly to the arrest of five pirate
groups.

Geography: The village lies 300 kilometres (190 mi) north of the Arctic Circle and the
midnight sun is visible from May 19 to July 25. The sun is below the horizon from November 25
to January 28.

Climate: Average highs/lows for May & June are 43F/37F & 48/42
Culture: Andenes Church is located in the central part of the village. The local newspaper is
named Andyposten. Andenes hosts the annual "Rock mot Rus" (Rock against drugs) festival,
where young people perform their own rock music as well as more known headliner such as
Dead by April, Dimmu Borgir, Kvelertak, Turdus Musicus and Torch.

Notable residents:

Tom Stenvoll, footballer for Stabk

David Pedersen, singer known from the TV-show Idol

Kristian & Roger Adolfsen, owners of Norlandia Hotels & Resorts and Norlandia
Omsorg. Read more about them at http://www.adolfsen.com