Departure
96%
vs 95% ▲ 1
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Hercílio Luz International Airport serves Florianópolis, the capital of Santa Catarina, on Brazil's south coast, and traces its history back to a 1920s airfield used by the pioneering airmail pilots of the Aéropostale, including Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Today it is a busy international airport with two hard-surfaced runways, an ILS approach, and full ATC services, making it a straightforward but active destination for a simulator pilot flying into southern Brazil.
Hercílio Luz International Airport (ICAO: SBFL, IATA: FLN) is the main airport for Florianópolis, capital of the state of Santa Catarina, on Brazil's southern coast. It is operated by Zurich Airport Brasil and shares some of its facilities with the Florianópolis Air Force Base. For a visiting sim pilot it offers a mix of scheduled domestic and international airline traffic, a control tower and approach service, and an ILS-equipped main runway, all set against the backdrop of the island city of Florianópolis.
The airport lies at Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, at coordinates 27°40'13"S 048°33'09"W, on Brazil's southern Atlantic coast. It is a controlled aerodrome, with its own approach, tower and ground frequencies, reflecting its status as a large international airport handling scheduled airline services.
The airport has two physical hard-surfaced runways, both lit. The main runway, 14/32, offers 5,878 ft available on runway 14, which is served by an ILS, and 6,640 ft on runway 32. The secondary runway, 03/21, provides 4,909 ft on runway 03 and 4,440 ft on runway 21. Field elevation is 13 ft.
Florianópolis APP (approach) operates on 119.65 MHz, with ATIS broadcast on 127.45 MHz. Ground movements are handled on 121.7 MHz, and Florianópolis OPS is available on 122.5 MHz. Florianópolis TWR (tower) works on 118.7 MHz. Runway 14 is equipped with an ILS for instrument approaches.
The site began life as Campeche Field, built on a former Air Naval Base, and between 1927 and 1932 it was used by the French airmail operator Compagnie Générale Aéropostale, whose pilots included Jean Mermoz, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Henri Guillaumet. In 1941 jurisdiction passed to the Brazilian Air Force, and between 1942 and 1945 runway 03/21, the apron, control tower and a passenger terminal were constructed alongside facilities for the Florianópolis Air Force Base. The passenger terminal was rebuilt in 1952-1954 and remained in use until 1976, when a new terminal and apron opened; the old terminal became the cargo facility. Runway 14/32 opened in 1978, substantially increasing capacity, and in 1995 the airport was upgraded to international status, taking on seasonal and charter flights from Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay. In 2017 Flughafen Zürich AG was granted the concession to operate and expand the airport, and construction began in 2018 on a new terminal, opened in September 2019 on the opposite side of the main runway from the old building; the main runway was extended by 100 metres to its present length as part of the same project. In September 2024 TAP Air Portugal began nonstop service to Lisbon, the airport's first route to Europe. The airport's history includes two notable accidents: a Cruzeiro do Sul Douglas C-53D-DO crashed on 22 March 1951 following an overshoot in bad weather and an engine failure, and a Transbrasil Boeing 727 crashed on 12 April 1980 on a night instrument approach during a severe thunderstorm.
Hercílio Luz International Airport now operates as a large, internationally connected airport under Zurich Airport Brasil, handling scheduled domestic and international airline services alongside a shared role with the Florianópolis Air Force Base. Traffic includes flights to destinations across Brazil and to Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay and, since 2024, Lisbon.
