Nonstop flight route between Fiumicino (near Rome), Italy and Ponce, Puerto Rico:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Fiumicino – Leonardo da Vinci International Airport (FCO), Fiumicino (near Rome), Italy and Mercedita Airport (PSE), Ponce, Puerto Rico would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,829 miles (or 7,772 kilometers).

A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between Fiumicino – Leonardo da Vinci International Airport and Mercedita Airport, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.

Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between Fiumicino – Leonardo da Vinci International Airport and Mercedita Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Fiumicino – Leonardo da Vinci International Airport (FCO):

• The terminals were upgraded during the 1990s and 2000s.
• Fiumicino – Leonardo da Vinci International Airport (FCO) has 4 runways.
• Ground handling services were provided by Aeroporti di Roma until 1999, when it created Aeroporti di Roma Handling.
• Since 2005 the airport operates a category III B instrument landing system.
• Fiumicino – Leonardo da Vinci International Airport handled 36,166,345 passengers last year.
• Because of Fiumicino – Leonardo da Vinci International Airport's relatively low elevation of 13 feet, planes can take off or land at Fiumicino – Leonardo da Vinci International Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• In addition to being known as "Fiumicino – Leonardo da Vinci International Airport", another name for FCO is "Fiumicino – Aeroporto Internazionale Leonardo da Vinci".
• The closest airport to Fiumicino – Leonardo da Vinci International Airport (FCO) is Ciampino–G. B. Pastine International Airport (CIA), which is located only 18 miles (30 kilometers) E of FCO.
• The furthest airport from Fiumicino – Leonardo da Vinci International Airport (FCO) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,975 miles (19,272 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.

Facts about Mercedita Airport (PSE):

• The closest airport to Mercedita Airport (PSE) is Antonio (Nery) Juarbe Pol Airport (ARE), which is located 31 miles (51 kilometers) NNW of PSE.
• On August 12, 1981, an Air Florida plane with 125 Haitian refugees aboard landed at Mercedita en route to the Fort Allen facility in Juana Diaz, part of the 1981 Haitian refugees exodus.
• In addition to being known as "Mercedita Airport", other names for PSE include "Aeropuerto Mercedita" and "18.00'30"N, 66.33'47"W".
• On July 1, 2011, a Cessna 185 that was supposed to land at Mercedita airport with a family of five on board, registration number N8438Q, crashed while on its way from Culebra.
• Because of Mercedita Airport's relatively low elevation of 29 feet, planes can take off or land at Mercedita Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• In early 2010, members of the Ponce Chamber of Commerce strongly criticized the Puerto Rico Ports Authority and its director Alvaro Pilar Villagran after failure to execute on a legally binding agreement of November 2008, whereby the Ports Authority agreed to an investment of $8 million to build an airport drainage system needed as part of any additional expansion work.
• The furthest airport from Mercedita Airport (PSE) is Barrow Island Airport (BWB), which is nearly antipodal to Mercedita Airport (meaning Mercedita Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Barrow Island Airport), and is located 12,201 miles (19,636 kilometers) away in Barrow Island, Western Australia, Australia.
• The Puerto Rico Ports Authority recently announced an investment of 7 million dollars to extend Mercedita's runway to 8,000 feet.
• The airport is also home of the southern aerial division of the Puerto Rico Police Department.
• Mercedita Airport (PSE) currently has only 1 runway.
• In the fall of 1992, the runway was extended to make it possible for American Airlines to run flights to Miami, Florida.