Widerøe commenced seaplane operates to Værøy from 1965; five years later the first helicopter services were introduced. Planning of an airport started in the late 1960s, but unfavorable weather conditions prolonged finding a suitable location. The decision to build the airport was taken in 1984, construction began the following year and the airport opened on 1 June 1986. The fatal Widerøe Flight 839 accident took place on 12 April 1990, in which heavy wind caused structural failure of a Twin Otter. The airport has been closed since; helicopter services commenced in 1993 and Værøy Heliport opened in 1997.
