Departure
96%
vs 95% ▲ 1
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Marche Airport, also known historically as Ancona Falconara or Raffaello Sanzio Airport, lies at Falconara Marittima on the Adriatic coast west of Ancona in Italy's Marche region. It is a modern civil airport with a single long paved runway and full instrument approach capability, making it a straightforward destination for both airline and general aviation traffic. Its history stretches back to the 1930s as a military emergency field, through wartime damage and NATO occupation, to its present role as the region's principal gateway.
Marche Airport serves Ancona and the wider Marche region of central Italy, situated in Falconara Marittima roughly 12 km west of Ancona city centre. It began life as a modest military emergency landing ground and has grown into a full international airport with scheduled passenger and cargo services, offering a sim pilot a well-equipped Adriatic coastal field with an ILS-served long runway.
The airport sits on Italy's Adriatic coast in the Falconara Marittima area, close to Ancona, within the Marche region. It is positioned near the Strada statale 76 della Val d'Esino corridor linking Jesi and Falconara Marittima, and close to the Autostrada A14, giving clear ground reference lines for a VFR approach. Precise coordinates are 43.6167N, 13.3603E, at a field elevation of 36 feet.
The airfield has a single physical runway aligned 04/22, hard-surfaced and lit. The 22 threshold data shows a runway length of 9221 feet with ILS, while the 04 threshold is listed at 9072 feet, also lit; both directions are on the same hard-paved strip, giving ample length for airliners and general aviation traffic alike.
Approach control is provided by Romagna Approach on 37.975 MHz and 118.15 MHz. The airport broadcasts ATIS on 122.85 MHz, and the tower operates on 119.8 MHz. An ILS is available for runway 22, supporting instrument approaches in poor visibility or at night.
The airfield lies close to the Adriatic shoreline at Falconara Marittima, with the small Castelferretti-Falconara Aeroporto railway station situated just outside the airport boundary, and the Strada statale 76 running past the field towards Jesi, both useful as ground reference features when inbound.
The origins of the airfield date to 1929, when the Province of Ancona first proposed building and managing an airport in the Marche region. Constructed with Ministry of Aeronautics authorisation in the Contrada Fiumesino area of Falconara, it began as a military emergency landing field before ownership passed to the state in 1933 and it gained formal recognition as a civil airport in 1939. During the Second World War the airport suffered damage and was subsequently occupied by the Allies, who established a NATO base there in 1950, a military presence that delayed its civil restoration for some years. Regular commercial flights began in 1963 with biweekly services to Rome, Pescara and Milan, followed by Bari and Venice in 1964. A new terminal was built in 1965, and in 1968 Aerdorica S.r.l. was formed to manage the airport and plan its expansion, leading to the opening of the Raffaello Sanzio Airport near Castelferretti in 1981. A further modernisation, including a new terminal designed by Volkwin Marg of Gerkan, Marg and Partners, was completed in June 2004. Since June 2021 the airport has been managed by Ancona International Airport S.p.A., under which it was renamed Ancona International Airport - Raffaello Sanzio.
Marche Airport today handles scheduled passenger services from carriers including Air Dolomiti, DAT, Ryanair, Volotea and Wizz Air, alongside cargo operations by DHL Aviation, FedEx Express and UPS Airlines, reflecting its role as the principal airport for the Marche region.