Originally Posted by
B747-437B
EU regulations require segregation of pax originating outside the EEC. Due to the layout of the KEF terminal (where "swing" gates can be converted from Schengen to non-Schengen), the only way to exit a non-EEC gate is to pass via the EEC concourse and its security check.
Your explanation makes perfect sense... but what I don't understand is why the airport is (still) laid out in this way. The rules about segregating passengers have existed for quite a few years now, and other airports have made the necessary alterations... why not KEF? It can't be that onerous to construct an extra passageway that would enable arriving passengers to exit the building without passing through the sterile area...