Departure
93%
vs 95% ▼ 2
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Ilopango International Airport (MSSS) lies on the eastern edge of San Salvador in El Salvador, a historic single-runway field that served as the country's principal international gateway until 1980. Today it is used for military, air taxi and charter operations, and is home to the National Aviation Museum housed in its original terminal building.
Ilopango International Airport sits on the eastern side of the city of San Salvador and was, for decades, the country's main international airport before that role passed to the newer El Salvador International Airport (Comalapa) in 1980. It is operated under the Autonomous Port Executive Commission (CEPA) and today serves military, air taxi and charter traffic rather than scheduled international services. For a simulator pilot it offers an interesting mix of a long, lit hard runway set within a busy urban area, a genuine slice of Central American aviation history, and the presence of the National Aviation Museum on the field.
The airport is located in Ilopango, on the eastern part of the city of San Salvador, El Salvador, at coordinates 13.6995 N, 89.1199 W and an elevation of 2014 feet. It once functioned as San Salvador's international airport until traffic transferred to El Salvador International Airport (Comalapa), roughly 50 km to the south, in January 1980.
The field has a single physical runway, 15/33, 7377 feet long with a hard surface and runway lighting. There is no ILS approach.
Radio services at Ilopango comprise APP on 119.5 MHz, GND on 121.9 MHz, RDO on 127.05 MHz and TWR on 118.3 MHz.
Ilopango was one of the largest and busiest airports in Central America during its heyday. On 27 April 1964 it made aviation history when a Pan Am Boeing 707-321B operating Flight 503 became the first jet airliner to land there, watched by more than 5,000 spectators. During the Salvadoran Civil War its location made it a target for guerrilla bombing, and it later played a role in the Iran-Contra affair, being used by dummy corporations linked to the Reagan administration to fly funding and arms to Contra rebels in Nicaragua. The airport ended international scheduled service in January 1980 when the larger, more modern Comalapa International Airport opened. Over the decades the field has recorded a number of accidents involving Salvadoran Air Force and civil aircraft, including a 1926 Brown parasol monoplane crash, a fatal 1938 Caproni AP.1 test-flight accident, a 1943 Fairchild PT-19B crash, and a 1947 collision between a Douglas C-47 and a train while landing.
Administration of the airport passed from the military to the Comisión Ejecutiva Portuaria Autónoma (CEPA) in 2001, which has overseen a gradual modernisation programme. Ilopango is currently used for military, air taxi and charter aviation, with operators including Transportes Aéreos Guatemaltecos and CM Airlines. A new passenger terminal, costing US$684,000 and tripling the airport's passenger capacity, was inaugurated on 7 December 2023. The airport also hosts the annual Ilopango Air Show and is home to the National Aviation Museum (Museo Nacional de Aviación), housed in the original terminal building. The Salvadoran Civil Aviation Authority has its headquarters on the airport property.dev