The Norwegian Civil Aviation Centre is situated southeast of the Bodø town centre, in an area characterised by light industry near to the runway. At the same time it is easily visible from the new main road in town. The main road - Olav V's gate - runs through the site of the Civil Aviation Centre. Its characteristic design is partially based upon the road and the airport, something that set the limits for height, form and use of material.

The building measures 250 metres in length and has an overall floor space of 12,000 square metres. There is one main volume on each side of the main road, raised above the street the traffic becomes the complex's heart or core, which adjoins the two sections together. Within this circular central section lies the centre's main entrance. The building has a closed quality and there are few windows. Both the façades and the roof are clad with various types of aluminium-coloured sheeting material, while the central section, that houses the entrance, is dominated by planes of glass in a dark blue colour.

The resolution to construct a Norwegian civil aviation centre is Bodø was passed by the Norwegian Parliament (Stortinget) in March of 1990, and BOARCH arkitekter were commissioned to design the complex, which was completed in 1994.