Viggo Widerøe was born in Kristiania as a son of the mercantile agent Theodor Widerøe (1868–1947) and Carla Johanne Launer (1875–1971). He was a brother of the engineer and accelerator physicist Rolf Widerøe, and grew up at Vinderen. In 1935 he married Solveig Agnes Schrøder (1914–1989); they had the daughter Turi Widerøe. Through her, Viggo Widerøe was the father-in-law of Karl Erik Harr between 1972 and 1975.
