REYKJAVIK, Iceland — In retrospect, it was probably not a fantastic idea to leave Iceland’s economic fortunes tethered to an airline called WOW.

Before it collapsed in March, WOW Air delivered more than one-fourth of all international visitors to this ruggedly spectacular island nation. Its credulity-straining fares — $199 round trip from New York and San Francisco — were key elements of a tourism bonanza that lifted Iceland from its catastrophic 2008 financial crisis.