It can be said that the specialty of neurosurgery in Iceland had its beginnings on November 30, 1971, with the arrival of a huge American C-130 Hercules aircraft. It was carrying a small package containing Scoville aneurysm clips. They were sent to the late Bjarni Hannesson (1938-2013), who had received his neurosurgical training in 1967-1971 at the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (then known as Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital and located in Hanover, New Hampshire). He used one to clip the right posterior communicating artery aneurysm of a 34-year-old fisherman, who recovered well. The apparent reason for the use of such a huge aircraft for such a small payload is to be found in the sociocultural politics of the Cold War. It involved the continued presence of the American base at Keflavík, where the C-130 landed. The base was under pressure to be closed by Iceland's left-leaning, nominally communist government. The C-130's arrival generated welcome publicity for the continued operation of the American base, which is still there.
Keywords: Cold War; Iceland; cerebral aneurysm clip; history; neurosurgery; vascular disorders.