Nonstop flight route between Praia, Cape Verde and Ponce, Puerto Rico:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from RAI to PSE:
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- About this route
- RAI Airport Information
- PSE Airport Information
- Facts about RAI
- Facts about PSE
- Map of Nearest Airports to RAI
- List of Nearest Airports to RAI
- Map of Furthest Airports from RAI
- List of Furthest Airports from RAI
- Map of Nearest Airports to PSE
- List of Nearest Airports to PSE
- Map of Furthest Airports from PSE
- List of Furthest Airports from PSE
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Praia International Airport (RAI), Praia, Cape Verde and Mercedita Airport (PSE), Ponce, Puerto Rico would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,856 miles (or 4,596 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 Praia 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 Praia 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:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RAI / GVNP |
Airport Name: | Praia International Airport |
Location: | Praia, Cape Verde |
GPS Coordinates: | 14°55'27"N by 23°29'38"W |
Operator/Owner: | Aeroportos Segurança Aérea (ASA) |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 230 feet (70 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from RAI |
More Information: | RAI Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | PSE / TJPS |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Ponce, Puerto Rico |
GPS Coordinates: | 18°0'29"N by 66°33'47"W |
Area Served: | Ponce, Puerto Rico |
Operator/Owner: | Puerto Rico Ports Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 29 feet (9 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from PSE |
More Information: | PSE Maps & Info |
Facts about Praia International Airport (RAI):
- Praia International Airport (RAI) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Praia International Airport (RAI) is Bellona/Anua Airport (BNY), which is nearly antipodal to Praia International Airport (meaning Praia International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Bellona/Anua Airport), and is located 12,103 miles (19,477 kilometers) away in Anua, Bellona Island, Solomon Islands.
- The closest airport to Praia International Airport (RAI) is Maio Airport (MMO), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) NE of RAI.
- Because of Praia International Airport's relatively low elevation of 230 feet, planes can take off or land at Praia 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.
Facts about Mercedita Airport (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.
- On June 24, 1972, Prinair Flight 191, which took off from Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico, crashed while attempting to land at Mercedita Airport.
- 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.
- The first scheduled commercial flights at Mercedita occurred in 1965 when domestic flights started.
- In February 2009, Ponce mayor María Meléndez sought transfer of the airport from the Puerto Rico central government to the Ponce Municipal government amidst discontent with the bureaucracy at the central government that could be avoided if the airport was locally managed.
- Mercedita Airport (PSE) currently has only 1 runway.
- In addition to being known as "Mercedita Airport", other names for PSE include "Aeropuerto Mercedita" and "18.00'30"N, 66.33'47"W".
- 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 closest airport to Mercedita Airport (PSE) is Antonio (Nery) Juarbe Pol Airport (ARE), which is located 31 miles (51 kilometers) NNW of PSE.