View source for Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport

{{Short description|Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2015}}
{{Infobox airport
| name                = Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport
| nativename          = {{smaller|Isla Grande Airport<br />''Aeropuerto Isla Grande''}}
| image               = {{multiple image
  | total_width              = 275
  | border                   = infobox
  | perrow                   = 1/1/2/2/2
  | caption_align            = center
  | image1                   = Isla Grande Airport (SIG), San Juan, Puerto Rico (12173864883).jpg
  | caption1                 = West view of Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport from [[San Juan Bay]], 2012
  | image2                   = Pan American Pier (22899246041).jpg
  | caption2                 = South view of Airport in-between [[Port of San Juan |San Juan Cruise Port]] and [[Port of San Juan]], 2015 }}
| IATA                = SIG
| ICAO                = TJIG
| FAA                 = SIG
| type                = Public
| owner               = [[Puerto Rico Ports Authority]]
| operator            = 
| city-served         = [[San Juan, Puerto Rico]]
| location            = [[San Juan, Puerto Rico]]
| elevation-f         = 10
| elevation-m         = 
| website             = 
| coordinates         = {{Coord|18|27|24|N|66|05|54|W|region:US-PR_scale:10000|display=inline,title}}
| image_map           = TJIG Airport Diagram.pdf
| r1-number           = 9/27
| r1-length-f         = 5539
| r1-surface          = Asphalt
| stat-year           = 
| stat1-header        = 
| stat1-data          = 
| stat2-header        = 
| stat2-data          = 
| footnotes           = Source: [[Federal Aviation Administration|FAA]]<ref name="FAA">{{FAA-airport|ID=SIG|use=PU|own=PU|site=53180.*A}}. Federal Aviation Administration. Effective April 5, 2012.</ref> GCM<ref>{{GCM|SIG|Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport}}</ref> Google Maps<ref>{{cite web |title=Isla Grande Airport |url=https://www.google.com/maps/@18.4574067,-66.0981653,2582m/data=!3m1!1e3 |website=Google Maps |access-date=9 June 2018}}</ref>
| image_map_caption   = FAA airport diagram
}}

'''Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport''' ([[Spanish language|Spanish]]: ''Aeropuerto Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci'') {{airport codes|SIG|TJIG|SIG}}, commonly known as '''Isla Grande Airport''' ([[Spanish language|Spanish]]: ''Aeropuerto de Isla'' ''Grande'') is a small [[List of airports in Puerto Rico|airport]] in [[Puerto Rico]] serving the capital [[Municipalities of Puerto Rico|municipality]] of [[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]] and its [[San Juan–Bayamón–Caguas metropolitan area|metropolitan area]] since 1929.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Airport Data and Information Portal |url=https://adip.faa.gov/agis/public/#/airportData/SIG |access-date=2025-02-10 |website=adip.faa.gov}}</ref> Named after [[United States Air Force|U.S. Air Force]] [[Major (rank)|Major]] [[Fernando L. Ribas-Dominicci|Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci]], the {{convert|102|acre|ha||lk=on|abbr=out}} airport is located on [[San Juan Bay]] in the [[Isla Grande (Santurce)|Isla Grande]] district  of [[Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico|Santurce]] [[Barrios of San Juan, Puerto Rico|barrio]] in San Juan, about {{convert|2|to|6|mi|lk=on|abbr=out}} from the [[Old San Juan]] historic quarter, [[Condado (Santurce)|Condado]] and [[Isla Verde, Puerto Rico|Isla Verde]] resort areas, [[Hato Rey]] business center, and [[Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport|SJU main airport]]. It is situated in-between the [[Port of San Juan#Cruise service|San Juan Cruise Port]], and the [[Puerto Rico Convention Center]] and the [[Distrito T-Mobile]] entertainment center. 

While its primary activity is [[general aviation]], Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport also handles small private international flights and commercial domestic flights, particularly between the [[Geography of Puerto Rico|main island]] and the [[Spanish Virgin Islands]] of [[Vieques, Puerto Rico|Vieques]] and [[Culebra, Puerto Rico|Culebra]].<ref name=":0" /> It processed 35,871 total passengers in 2024.<ref name=":1" />
[[File:ISS047-E-783_-_View_of_Puerto_Rico.jpg|thumb|275x275px|Satellite view from [[Old San Juan]] historic quarter (upper left) in [[San Juan Islet]] to [[Isla Verde, Puerto Rico|Isla Verde]] resort area (upper right) in the [[Carolina, Puerto Rico|Carolina]] municipality with SIG (upper left) and [[Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport|SJU]] (lower right) airports visible, 2016]]

==History==
[[File:NAS San Jose Puerto Rico NAN6-47.jpg|thumb| Naval Air Station Isla Grande of [[San Juan, Puerto Rico]] in the mid-1940s]]

Originally constructed by the [[U.S. Navy]] as '''Naval Air Station Isla Grande''' prior to [[World War II]] in 1929,<ref name=":1">{{cite web |url=http://www.history.navy.mil/library/online/buildbaseswwii/bbwwii2.htm |title=Building the Navy's Bases in World War II |access-date=2014-06-10 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141008180312/http://www.history.navy.mil/library/online/buildbaseswwii/bbwwii2.htm |archive-date=October 8, 2014 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> the facility also served as [[Puerto Rico]]'s main international airport until 1954, when Isla Verde International Airport (subsequently renamed [[Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport]] in 1985) was built. Until that year, all international airlines, such as [[Deutsche Luft Hansa]], [[Iberia Airlines]], [[Delta Air Lines|Delta]] and [[Pan American World Airways|Pan Am]], flew to Isla Grande.

Until 1971, the airport also hosted '''Coast Guard Air Station San Juan'''.  That year, the [[U.S. Coast Guard|Coast Guard]] relocated its air station to [[Ramey Air Force Base]] on Puerto Rico's northwest coast.

Isla Grande was renamed in honor of [[United States Air Force]] Major [[Fernando Luis Ribas-Dominicci]], an [[F-111]] pilot who was killed in action during [[Operation El Dorado Canyon]] (the 1986 airstrike of [[Libya]]).

A controversy regarding Isla Grande and [[Dorado Airport]] surfaced in 2003. Dorado Airport wanted to expand and attract the private aviation sector that has been Isla Grande's main business for so long. Dorado airport eventually became a victim of urban development in Dorado and no longer exists.

In early 2003, it was announced that the [[Puerto Rico Grand Prix]] would be held on a 1.6 mile, 10-turn, temporary circuit on the airport's runway and taxiways as the season final of the 2003 [[SCCA]] [[2003 Trans-Am Series|Trans Am Series]]. The race, held on October 26, 2003, was won by Puerto Rican native [[Wally Castro]].<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2003/07/25/165650.html|title=Puerto Rico Grand Prix Releases Circuit Map|date=July 25, 2003|publisher=The Auto Channel|access-date=2016-11-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161126115818/http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2003/07/25/165650.html|archive-date=2016-11-26}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.puertorico-herald.org/issues/2003/vol7n44/PRSportsBeat0744-en.html|title=Wally Castro Scores Upset Victory At P.R. Grand Prix|last=Paese|first=Gabrielle|date=October 31, 2003|work=Puerto Rico Herald|access-date=2016-11-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161126120014/http://www.puertorico-herald.org/issues/2003/vol7n44/PRSportsBeat0744-en.html|archive-date=2016-11-26}}</ref> The event was initially on the [[2004 Trans-Am Series]] schedule, but was cancelled a month before its running.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://us.motorsport.com/transam/news/puerto-rico-grand-prix-canceled/1171064/|title=Puerto Rico Grand Prix canceled|date=September 6, 2004|publisher=Motorsport.com|access-date=2023-03-14}}</ref>

In 2006, after a detailed impact study and many rumors about the future of the airport, the [[Puerto Rico Ports Authority]] announced that Isla Grande airport would remain open for the foreseeable future, mostly because of its key function as the primary reliever for the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.aero-news.net/index.cfm?contentBlockId=6dc889af-bb34-43bf-80dd-75f0408c4018 | title = Historic Puerto Rico GA Airport Saved! Isla Grande Economic Analysis Sways Politicos | publisher = Aero-News Network | date = July 18, 2006}}</ref>

On August 4, 2011, the FAA announced that they were planning to close the airport's control tower due to budget cuts, since they operate it instead of the Puerto Rico Ports Authority.{{citation needed|date=June 2012}}

On July 8, 2012, airport officials denied via written communication to a local newspaper of "any plans to eliminate or privatize the airport, since the airport is one of the most important airports for general aviation on Puerto Rico, taking into account that its operation approximates around 300 daily operations." On that same newspaper it was published that [[Seaborne Airlines]], a regional air carrier, would transition its scheduled passenger operations to the neighboring San Juan [[Luis Muñoz Marin International Airport]] (SJU) with complete pullout on January 16, 2013.<ref name="test">[http://www.vocero.com/niegan-cierre-del-aeropuerto-de-isla-grande/ "Niegan el cierre del Aeropuerto de Isla Grande] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120713044329/http://www.vocero.com/niegan-cierre-del-aeropuerto-de-isla-grande/ |date=July 13, 2012 }}, Vocero de Puerto Rico July 8, 2012.</ref>

For a short period of time between 2007 and 2009, the airport became the flight hub of Puerto Rico's unofficial flag carrier, [[Prinair]], when that airline briefly returned to operating.

==Facilities and aircraft==
[[File:Isla Grande Airport SanJuan PuertoRico.jpg|thumb|Control tower at the airport]]
Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport covers an area of {{convert|102|acres}} at an elevation of {{convert|10|ft}} above [[mean sea level]]. It has one runway designated 9/27 with an asphalt surface measuring {{convert|5539|by|100|ft}}.<ref name="FAA" />

For the 12-month period ending September 30, 2013, the airport had 116,447 aircraft operations, an average of 319 per day: 92% [[general aviation]], 6% [[air taxi]], and 2% [[military aviation|military]]. At that time there were 232 aircraft based at this airport: 33% single-[[aircraft engine|engine]], 37% multi-engine, 1% [[jet aircraft|jet]], 24% [[helicopter]], and 6% [[military aircraft|military]].<ref name="FAA" />

==Airlines and destinations==
===Passenger===
<!-- Please use only independent sources. The airport and airlines itself are not independent sources. -->
{{Airport destination list
| [[Air Flamenco]] | [[Benjamín Rivera Noriega Airport|Culebra]], [[Antonio Rivera Rodríguez Airport|Vieques]]
| {{nowrap|[[Vieques Air Link]]}} | [[Benjamín Rivera Noriega Airport|Culebra]], [[Antonio Rivera Rodríguez Airport|Vieques]]
}}

===Statistics===
{{Bar graph
| title       = Carrier shares (June 2024 – May 2025)<ref name="transtats.bts.gov" />
| bar_width   = 35
| width_units = em
| label_type  = Carrier
| data_type   = Passengers (arriving and departing)
| data_max    = 15,000
| label1      = [[Vieques Air Link|Vieques]]
| data1       = 14,070
| comment1    = 79.31%
| label2      = [[Air Flamenco]]
| data2      = 3,340
| comment2    = 18.85%
| label3      = Fly The Whale
| data3      = 330
| comment3    = 1.84%
}}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Top domestic destinations (June 2024 – May 2025)<ref name="transtats.bts.gov">
{{cite web
 | url = http://www.transtats.bts.gov/airports.asp?pn=1&Airport=SIG
 | title = San Juan, PR: Isla Grande (SIG)
 | publisher = [[Bureau of Transportation Statistics]] (BTS), [[Research and Innovative Technology Administration]] (RITA), [[U.S. Department of Transportation]]
 | date = February 2016
 | access-date = February 15, 2016
}}
</ref>
|-
! Rank
! City
! Airport
! Passengers
|-
| 1
| [[Vieques, Puerto Rico]]
| [[Antonio Rivera Rodríguez Airport|Antonio Rivera Rodríguez Airport (VQS)]]
| align=right | 5,650
|-
| 2
| [[Culebra, Puerto Rico]]
| [[Benjamín Rivera Noriega Airport|Benjamín Rivera Noriega Airport (CPX)]]
| align=right | 3,180
|-
| 3
| [[St. Croix, USVI]]
| [[Henry E. Rohlsen Airport|Henry E. Rohlsen Airport (STX)]]
| align=right | 160
|}

==San Juan Army Aviation Support Facility==
The San Juan Army Aviation Support Facility operated by the [[Puerto Rico National Guard]] (PRNG) is the only military site on Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport. Its mission is to provide aviation maintenance support, and repair to the [[Puerto Rico Army National Guard]] and the following units:<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://currentops.com/installations/us/pr/pr-arng-aasf|title = PR ARNG Army Aviation Support Facility}}</ref>

* Company A, 1st Battalion, [[111th Aviation Regiment]]
* Company D, 1st Battalion, [[114th Aviation Regiment]]
* Detachment 1, Company B, 1st Battalion, 114th Aviation Regiment

The military aircraft at this facility are [[Eurocopter UH-72 Lakota|UH-72 Lakota]] and [[Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk|UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters]] and the Beechcraft [[C-12 Huron]].

==Incidents and accidents==
* On October 1, 1942, a [[Douglas C-39]] (DC-2) of the [[U.S. Army Air Forces]] flying from [[Fort Allen (Puerto Rico)|Losey Field]] in southern Puerto Rico to Isla Grande crashed into a hill in [[Coamo, Puerto Rico|Coamo]] instead, killing all 22 people on board.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Ranter|first=Harro|title=ASN Aircraft accident Douglas C-39 (DC-2) 38-524 Coamo|url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19421001-1|access-date=2021-03-26|website=aviation-safety.net}}</ref>
* On April 11, 1952, [[Pan Am Flight 526A]] crashed into the sea just after takeoff due to engine failure, killing 52 out of 69 passengers and crew.
* On December 21, 1991, a [[United Airlines]] [[Boeing 757]] flight en route to San Juan's [[Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport]] mistakenly landed at Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport. The aircraft, which was on a chartered flight as United Airlines Flight 5850, was later flown, without any passengers onboard (as the passengers departed from Isla Grande to their hotels by bus), to Luis Munoz Marin Airport.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1991-12-23-9104250064-story.html|title=United Flight Lands at Wrong Airport|website=[[Chicago Tribune]]}}</ref> 
* June 7, 1992: An [[Executive Air]] (for [[American Eagle Airlines|American Eagle]]) [[CASA 212]] flying from Dominicci Airport crashed short of the runway in [[Mayagüez, Puerto Rico|Mayagüez]], killing both crew members and all three passengers.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Ranter|first=Harro|title=ASN Aircraft accident CASA C-212 Aviocar 200 N355CA Mayaguez-Eugenio M. de Hostos Airport (MAZ)|url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19920607-0|access-date=2021-03-26|website=aviation-safety.net}}</ref>
* In December 2002, a helicopter that had been rented from a company that operates out of this airport was hijacked and taken to a jail in [[Ponce, Puerto Rico|Ponce]], where six inmates boarded the helicopter, forcing the pilot to drop them off at a farm. The pilot was able to fly back after he lied to the prisoners about their whereabouts, making them jump off the helicopter and zig-zagging the helicopter to prevent them from shooting at him. Soon after, all escapees were found by the police.
* On January 10, 2015, a [[Robinson R22]] collided with the ocean (near [[Cataño Ferry]] terminal, San Juan bay)  shortly after takeoff due to disorientation and failure to maintain rotor rpm,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/90589/pdf|publisher=NTSB|title=Final docket NTSB# ERA15FA096}}</ref> killing 1 (student performing a solo flight) and leaving the helicopter damaged beyond repair.
*On July 4, 2017, an aircraft that had taken off Ribas Dominicci Airport crashed nearby at a bay. The crash resulted in four injuries.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Una avioneta con cuatro tripulantes cae en la Bahía de San Juan|url=https://www.elnuevodia.com/noticias/seguridad/notas/una-avioneta-con-cuatro-tripulantes-cae-en-la-bahia-de-san-juan/|access-date=2021-03-26|website=El Nuevo Día|date=July 4, 2017|language=es}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Puerto Rico|Aviation}}
* [[Transport in Puerto Rico]]
* [[List of airports in Puerto Rico]]
* [[Aviation in Puerto Rico]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=13/18.4538/-66.0963 Isla Grande Airport] at [[OpenStreetMap]]
* {{SkyVector|SIG|Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport}}
* [http://www.islagrandeflying.com/ Isla Grande Flying School]
* {{FAA-diagram|01019}}
* {{FAA-procedures|SIG}}
* [http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=172865 Accident Robinson R22 Beta N348VH, 10 Jan 2015]
{{US-airport2|SIG|TJIG}}

{{Airports in Puerto Rico|state=collapsed}}

[[Category:Buildings and structures in San Juan, Puerto Rico]]
[[Category:Airports in Puerto Rico]]
[[Category:Miramar (Santurce)]]
[[Category:Closed installations of the United States Navy]]