Sigurður Helgason (July 20, 1921 – February 8, 2009) was an Icelandic airline executive best known for pioneering low-cost transatlantic airfares through his leadership at Loftleiðir, later known as

Icelandair Icelandair is the flag carrier of Iceland. Linked from here It is part of the Icelandair Group and operates to destinations on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean from its main airline hub, hub at Keflavík International Airport. Its smaller dom ...

Biography

Helgason was born on July 20, 1921, in

Reykjavík Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...

, the capital of

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

. In his 20s, he moved to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and graduated with a business degree from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

in 1947. Upon returning to Iceland, he managed a cement company. In 1953, Helgason joined the board of

Loftleiðir Loftleiðir (, ), internationally known as Icelandic Airlines (abbreviated IAL) or Loftleiðir Icelandic, was a private Icelandic airline headquartered on the grounds of Reykjavík Airport in Reykjavík, which operated mostly trans-Atlantic flig ...

, a small Icelandic airline established by three pilots in 1944. At that time, the

International Air Transport Association The International Air Transport Association (IATA ) is an airline trade association founded in 1945. IATA has been described as a cartel since, in addition to setting technical standards for airlines, IATA also organized tariff conferences tha ...

(IATA) regulated its members' fares. As a non-member, Loftleiðir, or Icelandic Airlines in English, was able to significantly undercut other transatlantic carriers' pricing, and it began service from New York to Luxembourg in 1955. Helgason managed the American operations of the company from 1961 to 1973. At that point, Loftleiðir was merged with

Flugfélag Íslands Air Iceland Connect, formerly Air Iceland (, ) was a regional airline with its head office at Reykjavík Airport in Reykjavík, Iceland. It operated scheduled services under the brand of its parent company, Icelandair, to domestic destinations a ...

to form

and he returned to Reykjavik to become its CEO. He stepped down as chief executive in 1984, assuming the position of chairman until retirement in 1991. He then lived in

Mustique Mustique is a private island in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. It is part of the Grenadines, a chain of islands in the West Indies. The island is located within Grenadines Parish, and the closest island is the uninhabited Petite Mustique, ...

, and

. Helgason's main interests after retirement were

fly fishing Fly fishing is an angling technique that uses an ultra-lightweight lure called an artificial fly, which typically mimics small invertebrates such as flying and aquatic insects to attract and catch fish. Because the mass of the fly lure is in ...

and the

International House of New York International House New York, also known as I-House, is a private, independent, non-profit residence and program center for postgraduate students, research scholars, trainees, and interns, located at 500 Riverside Drive in Morningside Heights, M ...

. He leased many rivers across Iceland, including the Hofsa. As a member of the

, he served on the board of directors, where he won the Harry Edmonds Award. Helgason died at the age of 87 on the island of

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, sometimes known simply as Saint Vincent or SVG, is an island country in the eastern Caribbean. It is located in the southeast Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, which lie in the West Indies, at the south ...

, where he spent winters. He was the first and only non-native to be buried on the island.

References

1921 births 2009 deaths Columbia Business School alumni Sigurdur Helgason Chief executives in the airline industry Sigurdur Helgason {{Iceland-business-bio-stub