Departure
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Las Américas International Airport (MDSD/SDQ) is the principal gateway to Santo Domingo, capital of the Dominican Republic, sited on the coast at Punta Caucedo between the city and Boca Chica. It is a major international hub with a single long runway, full ILS approach and a busy mix of airline, cargo and business traffic, making it a significant destination for simulator pilots flying into the Caribbean.
Las Américas International Airport serves Santo Domingo, the Dominican Republic's capital, and is operated by Aeropuertos Dominicanos Siglo XXI (AERODOM) under a long-term concession. It is one of the busiest airports in the Caribbean and the region's principal cargo hub, handling a wide variety of long-, medium- and short-haul aircraft, and currently serves as a hub for Arajet and Sky High Dominicana. For a simulator pilot it offers a substantial single-runway international operation with full precision approach capability, set on an attractive stretch of Caribbean coastline.
The airport lies at Punta Caucedo on the southern coast of the Dominican Republic, close to Boca Chica and roughly 20 km east of central Santo Domingo. It is the country's principal international aerodrome and sits within the airspace and area of responsibility of Santo Domingo air traffic services, with an approach control frequency provided for arriving and departing traffic.
The airport has a single physical runway, 17/35, aligned almost north-south and measuring 11,039 feet in length with a hard (asphalt) surface. The runway is lit for night operations, and an ILS is provided for approaches to runway 17.
Santo Domingo Approach is available on 119.3 MHz, with an ATIS broadcast on 126.2 MHz. Ground movements are handled on 121.9 MHz and the tower on 118.1 MHz. Santo Domingo Information (FSS) operates on 122 MHz, and an FCC frequency of 126.9 MHz is also listed. The single runway, 17/35, is equipped with an ILS to serve instrument approaches to runway 17.
Las Américas opened in 1959 as the official airport serving Ciudad Trujillo, as Santo Domingo was then named, and the field's history reflects the subsequent renaming of the city. In 2002 the airport's official name was changed to Aeropuerto Internacional Las Américas - José Francisco Peña Gómez, honouring the Dominican political figure, though it continues to be known locally simply as Las Américas or AILA. Through the 1950s to 1970s the airport was served by a succession of major carriers including Chicago and Southern Air Lines, Delta Air Lines, Pan American World Airways, American Airlines, Eastern Airlines and the Dominican national carrier Dominicana de Aviación, with piston airliners such as the Lockheed Constellation, Douglas DC-4, DC-6 and DC-3 giving way to jet types like the Boeing 707 and 747 and the Douglas DC-8 and DC-9 as the network expanded to New York, Miami, San Juan, Caracas, Curaçao and other Caribbean and South American points. The locally based Aerovias Quisqueyana operated transatlantic Boeing 707 service from the airport to Madrid in 1976, and by the mid-1990s European carriers including Air France and Alitalia were flying nonstop to Paris and other continental destinations. Over the decades the airport has served as a hub for a number of Dominican carriers including Dominicana de Aviación, APA International Air, PAWA Dominicana, Aeromar Líneas Aéreas Dominicanas, Aero Continente Dominicana and Queen Air.
Las Américas remains the Dominican Republic's second-busiest airport after Punta Cana and one of the largest in the Caribbean, as well as the region's busiest cargo hub. It is operated by AERODOM and has two connected passenger terminals, A and B, offering nineteen gates between them, with a third terminal under construction and expected to open by the end of 2028 to add further capacity. The airport currently serves as a hub for Arajet and Sky High Dominicana, and fixed-base operator facilities are available for private and charter aviation.
