NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE SURVEY 68; ICELAND; MILITARY GEOGRAPHY

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• Collection: NIS
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110055-3
• Release Decision: RIP
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 18
• Document Creation Date: October 25, 2016
• Sequence Number: 55
• Content Type: REPORTS

CNAIMMA
16YU416
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Iceland
June 1973
NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE -SURVEY
CONFIDENTIAL
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CONTENTS
This chapter supersedes the military geography cov-
erage in the General Survey dated December 1866.
A. Location and description
1
1. Topography
1
2. Climate
3
B. Military geographic region
5
C. Strategic area
6
D. Internal route
7
E. Approaches
7
1 Sea
7
2. Air
CONFIDENTIAL
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FIGURES
Page
pew
Fig. 1
Location and comparative areas
Fig.'7
Mountainous terrain nmiliew*A of
(inap)
I
Reykjavik (photo)
3
Fig. 2
Tcrrain' (inap)
2
Fig. 8
Reykjavik strategic ate ("NO)
1 0 0
Fig. 3
Vatnajokull glacier (photo)
3
Fig. 9
Reykjavik (photo)
7
Fig. 4
Southern coast at Vik (photo)
3
Fig., 10
Amphibious handing aft-.1% (taide)
0
Fig. 5
Stream northeast of Reykjavik (photo)
3
1,"Ig 11
Strategic area, Itilmil mile. awl
Fig. 6
Characteristics of the climate (chart)
4
approaches (nap) 101101C3 9
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[f" I -T tt U Hills 500 to 2000 feet
Vestnnannaeyjar
I Mountains Over 2000 feet
�Differences in elevation between tops and bottom
of adjacent topographic features.
AT/_ANTIC I OCI:4N Glaciers and icecaps
I 4502 Spot height (in feet)
0 20 40 60 Statute miles
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I I 1 0 20 40 60 Kilometers
zn� 2: 20� 18-
PROFILE Met
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FIGURE 3. Vatnajokull is the largest glacier in Iceland. The
central part of the glacier has gently rolling surfaces, but
the margins are gashed by great crevasses and the main
valleys on the southern and eastern borders are occupied
by tongues of 'ce, such as shown here, which have rugged,
corrugated s+rfaces. (U /OU)
r.uige ill width from several limidr�tl feet h o%vr it
mile and arc gencrlly deep alai swift. The high crater
period gencnilly is bet%%ecn carly Jim(- Lord late
September. with life Inghcst stage in Jul% then the
thaxsing of snots and i6N is greatest. \'iolent floods.
caused b the breaking of "ice darts in streams, niac
occur al it s tithe bet\\'eeti Junc;uid (A�tobcrand it lit
flood ;ircas 5 for 6 miles wide. Oil r.ire occasions fl(-ods
inity r�snit front volc�anic,eruptions beneath glaciers.
Strcatnbanks arc c�onitnciil\ lox% and nmrsh\ in the
plains; howvvcr. in the hills and nuonntains Loin along
the plateau cdgc, streams gcnenill\ flo\s through deep.
stccp Whiled. rock% gorges. Ilottonis arc commonl\
composed of sand..gnivvi. cobble. and boulcicrs in the
tipper rcachcs and of soft rind or ttuic�ksiind in the
loser rcaclics. Ic�clancl has nt;ui\ small lakes, nuirshcs.
hot springs, and gv scrs.
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fart11 bnildiug� ;i1' 1,rliin.jrih t1n�trnetltl of 1.1 +a
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11otn1
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railroad.
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WiWers. parlicular1% ;Jung 1111� coat. 11.1+4. relali+el+
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I:tensie eloudines�. light pro- cipitalit fligh
hnniitlih. and fairly �trine, �iirlacv +tiled� 1t�4-111
fretlm utl} throughoiil the tear.
\lead ;urttual pr�cipilalioil range� (r111 1+��� 111.111 _tt
inches in park of Ile 11orlh and lilt 011111.1 iliferior
to otcr 65 hiclies at setend st ;ttlterii localfun�. 1e.111
ni oithit pr�c�ipitalion +;irie. imt %111 II tttee11 I .uul
inches. and the grate %l ii11>oitnl. >;e11eral1t in -vier ill
lair suinnivr and in autun11i il lilt. north and i
alitnnn and \%inter in the .ortih. I le�cipithiti++le 1:111�
rnostlt its snore ill \t inter ant) raiii in summer Snot+
readies its gr�atv%l depth in Noce11da�r thrnt11;11
%%lien nuaithlt ater.lge� eUt.ed 12 iticht�-, ill p of
the� north but are bclrse 6 iiiche� lhrou>;hlilt tht..l
'I'll 1111derstornis are rare. occ.trring otie or hto litre-
each tray.
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FIGURE 4. The plain along the southern coast of Iceland is
pinched out near Vik by the dissected edge of the
plateau, which drops precipitously to the sea (U /OU)
FIGURE S. Waterfalls mark the points whet@ streams
plunge across the steep-sided edges of doe ttr9gled into=
rlor plateau. In these stretches streanbeds are rocky and
contain large boulders, and currents ore shag, (U,OU1

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I,a s ar lirIX Ilas lim trots sml %usellrtt
FICUM 7. The Itw4A'llaitw4lrf area northeast of Rey klovik
Is deepllr Msetfed and has rnomerous steep-sided, bar-
mma toc111r ridges !flat the like islands above the general
Woriol of No liltttlar plateau swfoce. the mountains gen.
erallir ore wwo covered ?November through April. (C)
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northern interior, generally would be difficult. Sites for
landing assault -type aircraft are available on airfields
at Reykjavik .,ind near Keflavik. 'There are several
landing strips near the small towns around the coast.
Unprepared helicopter landing sites are numerous
except in the more rugged areas. Airfield construction
would he diffict'tlt in most places. Air approaches and
runway orientations would commonly be restricted by
rugged terrain, and much grading and blasting would
be necessary. Construction of airfields having long
runways and unrestricte approaches would be
limited to the small areas of flat to gently rolling
plains, mostly in the southwest.
In most of Iceland, conditions are poor for irregular
force operations. Concealment from air observation
would be almost nonexistent, and sustenance and
shelter are lacking in large parts of the country. Only
about one-third of the island has an appreciable
vegetative cover of short grasses or low shrubs
interspersed with small areas of stunted trees; the
remainder is either barren or has only scattered plants.
What woodland exists is most extensive in the western
part of the island and consists mostly of small areas of
scrubby birch, willow, and mountain ash. Rarely are
the trees more than 30 feet high, and tile\ provide only
limited concealment from iir observation. Alleviating
conditions, however, are abundant cloudiness and,
particularly in late winter, restricted visibility because
of fog, snow, or rain. Settlements are widely dispersed
at irregular intervals along the coast, and food supplies
are largely confined to the coastal rirn and consist of
livestock, mainly sheep and cattle, and fish from the
surrounding waters. Crops are limited to potatoes and
hardy vegetables. Water is available everywhere
except in isolated areas in the interior, the
southwestern peninsula, and a few areas along the
northern coast. iviaterials for shelter and fuel are
extremely scarce. Supply by air could be effected in
extensive areas, and there are many beaches along the
coast suitable for supply of irregular forces by sea.
Roads are scarce and arc confined mostly to the
coastal littoral, but forces on foot could move almost
everywhere. Concealment from groom' observation
and cover from flat trajectory fire would be provided
by dissected terr except on the coastal plains and on
the nearly level plateau surfaces in the interior.
Conditions are generally unsuited for 'amphibious
operations. Although there are many beaches fairly
eveniv distributed along the coast, approaches
shoreward of the 5- fathom curve are severe!"
obstructed, most gradients ar,; too flat for dry -ramp
LST landings, and exits would be mainly by tracks
and trails or cross country on unfavorable terrain.
6
C. Strategic area (C;!_
The strategic area (Figti 8 and I I in lccli rid is in
the extreme southwestern part of the ;isl,;,: and
contains Ilcvkjavik (Figure 9), the capita city
(population about 51, 000), principal seaport, and the
industrial, commercial, and cultural center of the
country. Reykjavik handles over half of the foreign
trade of Iceland and contains over half of the industry.
Industrial installations in the strategic area primarily
are small and are concerned mainly with food
processing and producing light consumer goods. The
most important industries in Reykjavik are fish
processing, textiles. and fertilizer. A cement factor\ is
located at Akranes (population approximately 4,000),
and electrical appliances are produced at 1
fjordhnr (population approximately 9,000). The
largest aluminum smelter in the country (annual
capacity about 70,000 tons) is at Stramilsvik, a rapidly
developing industrial center. Large hyd
power installations supply the strategic area, and are
located rm the Sog and 'Thjorsa rivers. Over half of the
population of the country is in the strategic area, and
over -10% is in Reykjavik. 1- Ivalfjordhur, a fi`(,4d north
of Reykj avik, affords an extensive anchorage area for
large oceangoing vessels and was used as an assembly
point for convoys during World War II. Of the four
airfields with permanent- surface runways in the
country, the hest and largest is near Keflavik
(population about 5,000); it is it joint civil- military
airfield used by U.S. military forces and international
airlines and is a NATO field. Another permanent
surfaced airfield is the civil field at Reykjavik, un
international airport of entry.
Other important areas are Akureyri, Neskaupstad-
hur, and Vest maitnacyjar. Akureyri (population about
10,000), is the largest town in Iceland outside the
Reykjavik area and the most important town and port
in the north. It is it commercial and marketing center
and fishing port. The most important industries are
fish processing and textile manufacturing. It has an
airfield that is c.a international airport of entry.
Ncskaupstadhur (population about 1,500) is the most
important town in eastern Iceland. It is a fishing port,
and the major industry is fish processing. Vestman-
naeyJjr (population about 5,000), located on an island
off the southern coast, has the best harbor in southern
Iceland and is an important codfishing center. It has a
civil airfield, and fish processing is the most important
industry.
1
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