Ramón Villeda Morales International Airport
Encyclopedia
Ramón Villeda Morales International Airport , also known as La Mesa International Airport, is located 11 km (6.8 mi) from the city of San Pedro Sula
, in the Cortés Department in Honduras
. The airport is named after Ramón Villeda Morales
, who served as President of Honduras
from 1957 to 1963.
It is the major and busiest airport in Honduras, handling about 742,000 passengers in 2010. The airport also handles about 150 flights internationally and domestically. The airport provides short connections to tourist attractions such as the Mayan Ruins of Copan, La Ceiba, and the Caribbean beaches of Roatan and Tela.
A new terminal is expected to be completed by 2015, in line with the airport expansion program launched by InterAirports
. There is currently a departure tax
of $37.85 (approximately 700 Lempiras) to help with expansion of the airport.
The airport is very easy to maneuver. All flights leave and arrive on the second level, which is also where the main security area is located. The main level consists of a few stores and restaurants, the ticket counters, the bank where you pay the departure tax, ATMs and money exchange booths. Customs is also located on the main floor. Upon arrival in Honduras, you will go through customs—there are lines for residents and immigrants (visitors). The lines are long and most of the time it takes a thirty to forty-five minutes to get through the customs desk and scanning area. When leaving the country you must first pay the departure tax. A receipt is attached to your boarding pass.
of 27 m (88.6 ft) above mean sea level. It has one runway
designated 04/22 with a concrete
surface measuring 2805 metre.
San Pedro Sula
San Pedro Sula is a city in Honduras. It is located in the northwest corner of the country, in the Valle de Sula , about 60 km south of Puerto Cortés on the Caribbean. With an estimated population of 638,259 people in the main municipality, and 802,598 in its metro area , it is the second...
, in the Cortés Department in Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
. The airport is named after Ramón Villeda Morales
Ramón Villeda Morales
Ramón Villeda Morales is a municipality in the Honduran department of Gracias a Dios....
, who served as President of Honduras
President of Honduras
This page lists the Presidents of Honduras.Colonial Honduras declared its independence from Spain on 15 September 1821. From 5 January 1822 to 1 July 1823, Honduras was part of the First Mexican Empire of Agustín de Iturbide....
from 1957 to 1963.
It is the major and busiest airport in Honduras, handling about 742,000 passengers in 2010. The airport also handles about 150 flights internationally and domestically. The airport provides short connections to tourist attractions such as the Mayan Ruins of Copan, La Ceiba, and the Caribbean beaches of Roatan and Tela.
A new terminal is expected to be completed by 2015, in line with the airport expansion program launched by InterAirports
InterAirports
InterAirports is the company that administers all four international airports of Honduras directed by Freddy Nasser.* La Ceiba – Golosón International Airport* Roatán – Juan Manuel Gálvez International Airport...
. There is currently a departure tax
Departure tax
Departure tax is a fee charged to visitors of a country for leaving the country. Depending on the country situation, it can be charged at the airport to those about to catch a flight, or could be prepaid while purchasing an airline ticket....
of $37.85 (approximately 700 Lempiras) to help with expansion of the airport.
The airport is very easy to maneuver. All flights leave and arrive on the second level, which is also where the main security area is located. The main level consists of a few stores and restaurants, the ticket counters, the bank where you pay the departure tax, ATMs and money exchange booths. Customs is also located on the main floor. Upon arrival in Honduras, you will go through customs—there are lines for residents and immigrants (visitors). The lines are long and most of the time it takes a thirty to forty-five minutes to get through the customs desk and scanning area. When leaving the country you must first pay the departure tax. A receipt is attached to your boarding pass.
Facilities
The airport resides at an elevationElevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
of 27 m (88.6 ft) above mean sea level. It has one runway
Runway
According to ICAO a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off of aircraft." Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface .- Orientation and dimensions :Runways are named by a number between 01 and 36, which is generally one tenth...
designated 04/22 with a concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
surface measuring 2805 metre.