Mercedita International AirportRequest for Qualifications. Puerto Rico Ports Authority. San Juan, Puerto Rico. 15 March 2019. Accessed 16 January 2020. (AIM)Ponce’s Mercedita airport ready to receive more passengers. Agustín Criollo Oquero. Caribbean Business. 24 April 2017. Accessed 16 January 2020. () is an international airportArchived from the original, Act 141 of July 20, 2012 Senate Bill No. 9. Senate of Puerto Rico. Government of Puerto Rico. 20 July 2012, by the Wayback Machine. located three nautical miles (6 km) east of the central business district of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The airport covers 270 cuerdas (approx. 262.2 acres) of landEl Aeropuerto: otro diamante sin pulir Jason Rodríguez and Omar Alfonso. La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. Year 30. Issue 1480. Page 8. 11 April 2012. Retrieved 11 April 2012. and has one runway. It was inaugurated as an international airport on 1 November 1990.Terminal Building Improvements Bids. Vol. 29, No. 14 (19 April 2010), page 747 (Bid No. 30-90; BPR No. 50602). San Juan, Puerto Rico: Industrial Publishers, 19 April 2010. Retrieved 23 April 2010. It was built with combined funds from the Municipality of Ponce and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Mercedita International is Puerto Rico's largest airport in terms of military personnel volume, the second largest in terms of military freight,Jose Valdes. Ponce Podria Administrar el Aeropuerto Mercedita (in Spanish). El Nuevo Dia. 12 November 1997. and the third largest in terms of scheduled commercial passenger traffic.Ports Authority invests $11.8M in infrastructure improvements at Ponce airport. News Is My Business. 16 August 2019. Accessed 16 January 2020. The airport is certified under part 139 of the Federal Aviation Regulations.
As per Federal Aviation Administration records, there were 215,165 enplanements in fiscal year 2015–2016. Voces del Sur. vocesdelsurpr.com 13 August 2016. Accessed 26 January 2017. It is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a primary commercial service airport. Mercedita was the only one of Puerto Rico's three international airports to see an increase in passenger flow in 2012.Fuera de peligro aeropuerto Mercedita. Omar Alfonso. La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 23 February 2013. Retrieved 26 February 2013 (Printed edition publication data: Recortes en la FAA: Fuera de peligro el Aeropuerto Mercedita. Year 31. Issue 1526. Page 14. 27 February 2013.). The municipality of Ponce has been attempting to gain ownership of the airport from the government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico as it believes local management of the airport will help the municipal and regional economy.Piden estudio para traspaso de Mercedita. Reinaldo Millán. La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. Year 30. Issue 1492. Page 14. 4 July 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2012. Archive on 2013-03-15, 16:33:08 at the Wayback Machine.
History Early history Built in 1939, Mercedita was originally a modest aerodrome used for the airborne irrigation of sugarcane fields belonging to Destilería Serrallés. The airport took the name of the sugarcane plantation that it was part of, Hacienda Mercedita. The founder of the plantation, Juan Serrallés, had named his plantation in honor of his wife Mercedes.History. Destilería Serrallés. Ponce, Puerto Rico. Retrieved 6 March 2013. To commemorate this, a portrait of Mrs. Mercedes Serrallés was unveiled in the airport on 30 December 1992 by then-governor of Puerto Rico Rafael Hernandez Colon.
The takeoff/landing strip was then only long by wide. During World War II it was turned into a military airport, and in 1947 the U.S. Navy ceded the airport to the Puerto Rico Ports Authority. The airport officially started operations in April 1948.AirNav: Mercedita Airport. Information current as of 11 February 2010. Retrieved 4 March 2010.
In 1949, however, it was determined that the runway of what was then the Ponce Airport at the nearby Losey Field (today, Fort Allen,Cristobal Colon. "A mis amigos de la Universidad Catolica" (in Spanish). Publicaciones Puertorriqueñas Inc. 1993. Page 71. Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico) no longer met the newer and more stringent minimum airport safety requirements, and airport operations were suspended. As a result, studies were initiated for the construction of a new airport at Mercedita Airfield. A wall plaque inside the airport states the airport was built with funds from both the Government of Puerto Rico and the Government of the Autonomous Municipality of Ponce and that it was inaugurated in November 1955. It was officially inaugurated on 6 November 1955, via a day-long program of ceremonies and activities transmitted live via radio, and filmed for subsequent TV broadcasting. During the ceremonies, the project's engineer, Raul Gayá Benejám, made delivery of the new facilities to Salvador V. Caro, executive director of the Puerto Rico Ports Authority.Inauguracion del Aeropuerto Mercedita en Ponce: Programa. Program booklet. 4pp. Accessed 19 November 2020.
The first scheduled commercial flights at Mercedita occurred in 1965 when domestic flights started. International flights started in 1971.Ponceños pedirán control de Aeropuerto (in Spanish). La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 23 March 2012. Retrieved 26 March 2012. Meanwhile, Aerolineas de Ponce began services from Mercedita in 1966; the airline had a hub at the airport but soon had most of its flight operating from San Juan instead and changed its name to Prinair.
On 12 August 1981, an Air Florida plane with 125 Haitian refugees aboard landed at Mercedita en route to the Fort Allen facility in Juana Diaz, part of the 1981 Haitian refugees exodus.Fuerte Allen: calvario con rostro haitiano Carmen Cila Rodríguez. "El Sur en la Historia." La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 12 October 2011. Page 18. Retrieved 12 October 2011.
New airport The airport has been enlarged on various occasions. One of the architects credited with the airport's construction is Raúl Gayá Benejam.Archivo y Centro de Investigacion Institucion Academica. Archivo de Arquitectura y Construccion de la Universidad de Puerto Rico. San Juan, Puerto Rico. Retrieved 13 July 2012. In 1962, Trade Winds started daily direct service to St. Thomas, U.S.V.I.Carmelo Rosario Natal. Ponce En Su Historia Moderna: 1945-2002. Published by Secretaría de Cultura y Turismo of the Government of the Autonomous Municipality of Ponce. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 2003. p. 43. One major construction project, in particular, took place in 1963 when the runway was extended from to 3,900 feet. In 1967, a master plan was adopted for the systematic development of the airport. In 1971 the runway was again extended, to to allow for the use by Boeing 727 aircraft. In 1987 the runway was once again extended, this time to . The passenger terminal was also remodeled, a platform was built for use by general aviation as was a new building for the Air Rescue Unit of the Puerto Rico Police.
1990s expansion work In the fall of 1992, the runway was extended to make it possible for American Airlines to run flights to Miami, Florida. The cost of the expansion was $3 million. The expansion provided additional length, as well as additional width. Also in the fall of 1992, the Puerto Rico Ports Authority spent another $6 million in improvements to the terminal building. These included an additional space in the baggage claim, immigration, customs, passenger waiting areas, vending areas, and Department of Agriculture installations.
The airport was formerly called Mercedita Airport, but on 1 November 1990Mensaje del Gobernador del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico Hon. Rafael Hernandez Colon con motivo de la inauguración de la expansion del Aeropuerto Internacional Mercedita y el recibimiento de los primeros vuelos de las aerolíneas Eastern y Carnival, 1 de Noviembre de 1990. Ponce, Puerto Rico. Fundación Biblioteca Rafael Hernandez Colon. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 1 November 1990. Accessed 17 January 2020. it was inaugurated as "Mercedita International Airport" after addition of customsPSE (TJPS). U.S. Federal Aviation Administration. Aeronautical Information Services. Accessed 16 January 2020. and border controlPonce, Puerto Rico - 4908. US Department of Homeland Security. U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Accessed 16 January 2020. facilities.
2000s-2010
After Ponce's mayor Rafael Cordero signed a contract to build a major seaport in the area, Mercedita's directors decided to expand the airport's runway to to accommodate anticipated growth in airline traffic.
On 17 June 2005, JetBlue began daily, non-stop service between John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York and Mercedita Airport. On 17 November 2005, Continental Airlines also commenced non-stop service, between Newark Liberty International Airport and Ponce.Continental to start daily non-stop Newark/Puerto Rico service. American Shipper/Howard Publications, Inc. 23 August 2005. Retrieved 5 August 2012. Archived on 2015-10-16, 21:33:51 at the Wayback Machine. This service ended on 17 January 2008. On 3 June 2006, Delta Connection began servicing the airport, with twice-weekly, regional jet service to Atlanta, Georgia. The service ended on 20 January 2007. JetBlue has also added daily, non-stop service between Ponce and Orlando International Airport.
During 2007, more passengers passed through the airport than the population of the entire city of Ponce itself. "Ponce's Mercedita airport served 251,000 passengers in 2007, an increase of 28% over the previous year."
Passenger movement at the airport in FY 2008 was 278,911, a 1,228% increase over fiscal year 2003 and the highest of all the regional airports for that 5-year period.Air Transportation. businessregisterpr.com. 1 September 2009. Accessed 15 November 2009. Archived on 2009-09-01, 16:14:24 at the Wayback Machine. In February 2009, Ponce mayor María Meléndez sought transfer of the airport from the Puerto Rico central government to the Ponce Municipal government amidst discontent with the bureaucracy at the central government that could be avoided if the airport was locally managed.Proyecto del Senado 405: LEY, Para transferir la jurisdicción del Aeropuerto Internacional Merceditas de Ponce, de la Autoridad de Puertos del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico al Municipio Autónomo de Ponce. Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico. Senado de Puerto Rico. 16ta Asamblea 1ra Sesión. Legislativa Ordinaria. 20 February 2009. Accessed 26 March 2012. Archived on 2016-01-03, 02:40:41, by the Wayback Machine.
In early 2010, members of the Ponce Chamber of Commerce strongly criticized the Puerto Rico Ports Authority and its director Alvaro Pilar Villagran after failure to execute on a legally binding agreement of November 2008, whereby the Ports Authority agreed to an investment of $8 million to build an airport drainage system needed as part of any additional expansion work.Archived on 2011-07-15, 06:55:28, by the Wayback Machine from the Original. Jason Rodríguez Grafal. Revés para Aeropuerto Mercedita: Crece malestar por posposición de expansión. Ponce, Puerto Rico: La Perla del Sur. January 2010 (section: Noticias Locales). Retrieved 1 November 2010.
In 2010, the Puerto Rico Ports Authority announced an investment of $7 million to extend Mercedita's runway to . Construction began in February 2011.Jason Rodríguez Grafal. Con inversión de $7 millones: Luz Verde a la expansión del Aeropuerto (in Spanish). Ponce, Puerto Rico: La Perla del Sur (newspaper). 14 April 2010 (section: Noticias Locales). Retrieved 16 April 2010. In 2012 the Authority installed two boarding bridges among other terminal improvements.
Facilities and aircraft Mercedita Airport covers an area of at an elevation of above mean sea level. It has one runway designated 12/30 with an asphalt surface measuring . Runway length includes displaced thresholds on Runways 12 and 30 respectively.