Aviationtag turns retired Icelandair Hekla Aurora into limited tags

Aviationtag has turned fuselage material from Icelandair’s retired Boeing 757 TF-FIU, known as Hekla Aurora, into a limited-edition collectible. The release preserves the aircraft’s Northern Lights livery and gives aviation fans a way to own a piece of one of Icelandair’s best-known jets.

Why it matters: - Aviationtag is preserving a recognizable piece of Icelandair history after the retirement of Hekla Aurora in fall 2025. - The limited edition turns original fuselage material into collectible tags, keeping the aircraft’s Northern Lights livery alive beyond the jet’s flying life. - The release targets aviation enthusiasts who value rare aircraft memorabilia tied to a well-known global route aircraft.

What happened: - Aviationtag and Icelandair created a limited edition from original material taken from Boeing 757 TF-FIU. - The aircraft, known as Hekla Aurora, was retired on Oct. 12, 2025, after a farewell flight over Iceland. - Aviationtag recovered sections of the fuselage in July 2026 in Lleida, Spain.

The details: - TF-FIU first flew in April 1994 and later served Iberia, Air Europa and then Icelandair Group, which acquired it in 2004. - Icelandair introduced the aircraft as Hekla Aurora in February 2015 with a flight from London to Reykjavík. - A specialist team in Norwich, England, recreated the Northern Lights livery in late 2014 using airbrushing techniques and photographic references. - The design included shades of green, turquoise, blue and midnight tones, plus an Icelandic winter landscape along the fuselage. - The cabin featured a custom LED lighting system meant to extend the aurora effect indoors. - The name Hekla combines an Icelandic girl’s name and the name of a volcano; Aurora refers to the aurora borealis. - Hekla Aurora flew routes between Europe, Iceland and North America and became one of Icelandair’s most recognizable aircraft. - The aircraft also handled special missions, including bringing 126 Icelandic citizens home from the Middle East via Jordan in October 2023. - Days later, the Boeing 757 covered a short domestic route between Reykjavík and Akureyri when a regional aircraft was unavailable. - Around 140 passengers joined Icelandair’s farewell flight, including some who traveled from abroad for the occasion. - The preserved material is now being handcrafted into limited-edition Aviationtags at Aviationtag’s Cologne workshop. - Each tag varies in color depending on which part of the fuselage it came from. - The complete edition is available at the company’s Icelandair collection. - Aviationtag is based in Cologne.

Between the lines: - Hekla Aurora had more than visual appeal; its long service history and special assignments gave the aircraft an emotional pull that helps explain the demand for memorabilia. - The project extends Aviationtag’s model of turning retired aircraft skin into keepsakes, but this edition carries extra recognition because the livery was widely viewed as one of Icelandair’s most distinctive. - The preservation effort also shows how airlines and memorabilia makers can monetize nostalgia after an aircraft leaves service.

What's next: - Aviationtag will continue handcrafting the limited tags from the recovered fuselage material. - Buyers can expect color differences between tags based on the section of skin used. - The release remains available while supplies last.