Ponta Delgada–João Paulo II Airport, named after Pope John Paul II, is an international airport located on the island of São Miguel, in the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. Situated 2 kilometres west of the city centre of Ponta Delgada, it is the primary airport in the Azores, as well as the fifth largest infrastructure managed by ANA Aeroportos de Portugal. The terminal was finished in 1995; by 2005 the airport served a total of 873,500 passengers. It has scheduled domestic flights to all islands of the Azores, plus Madeira and the mainland, namely. João Paulo II Airport also accommodates international flights to and from Europe and North America. The airport is the major hub for the SATA Group of airlines, which includes both inter-island SATA Air Açores and international Azores Airlines, and since April 2015 as a base for Ryanair.
João Paulo II Airport
Landing strip of the airport with the Atlantic at the background
Interior of main terminal
São Miguel Island, nicknamed "The Green Island", is the largest and most populous island in the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. The island covers 760 km2 (290 sq mi) and has around 140,000 inhabitants, with 45,000 people residing in Ponta Delgada, the archipelago's largest city.
Satellite image of the island
The landing of the Spanish Tercios at Terceira during the Portuguese succession crisis of 1580
An 1845 engraving of the island of São Miguel (west is up)
Lagoa do Fogo (English: Lake of Fire), as seen from Miradouro da Serra da Barrosa, along the Água de Pau Massif