Juan Santamaría International Airport

Juan Santamaría International Airport (Spanish: Aeropuerto Internacional Juan Santamaría) (IATA: SJO, ICAO: MROC) is located in Alajuela about 20 km from downtown San José, Costa Rica. It is a hub airport for TACA/Lacsa, and focus city airport for Copa Airlines. It is named after Costa Rica's national hero Juan Santamaría, a courageous drummer boy who died in 1856 defending his country against forces led by US-American filibuster William Walker. The airport, which is Costa Rica's primary international airport, serves a great number of tourists from Canada, Europe and the United States. There are three other international airports in the country, but of those only the Daniel Oduber International Airport in Liberia, Guanacaste is served by major airlines. Currently, Juan Santamaría with 4.1 million passengers, is the second busiest airport in Central America after Tocumen International Airport in Panamá.

The airport's main runway allows for operations of large, widebody aircraft. Currently some scheduled flights are operated with Airbus A330 and A340, and Boeing 747 and 767, for both passengers and freight. A Concorde landed in the year 1999 for that year's airshow. The airport's major airlines are TACA/Lacsa with its international network and TACA's subsidiary Sansa for domestic flights. The airport has also a small hangar (called the "NASA" hangar) where they keep research aircraft that operate in Costa Rica. Among the most relevant aircraft operated from this hangar is the WB-57F high altitude aircraft.

The Costa Rican government charges a $26 USD departure fee, which can be paid in cash (U.S. dollars or equivalent in Colones) or may be paid by Credit Card. The fee can be paid at the airport or in advance at most hotels and banks.

Aero Costa Rica

Aero Costa Rica was an airline based in Costa Rica. It has ceased operations.

Fleet and History

Aero Costa Rica ACORI, S.A. started service on May 11, 1992 with two Boeing 727-200 Ex-Pan Am (N353PA and N354PA) in route San José-Miami as its only destination network. In July 1992 flight ML 211 made and emergency landing in Grand Cayman when the flight engineer forgot to open and auxiliary fuel valve after taking off from Miami. Later that year route San José-San Pedro Sula-Orlando was inaugurated but company decided to drop it off four months later. In 1993 fleet was changed from 2 Boeing 727-200 to 2 Boeing 737-200 (N170PL and N171PL); with this flight equipment routes from San José to Atlanta (ATL) and San Andrés Islas (ADZ) were added. In the mid-1990s the airline also had a Fort Lauderdale (FLL) to San Jose (ICAO-MROC / FAA, IATA - SJO) route Due to serious financial difficulties and bad administration, both 737s were returned to the lessor at the end of 1994. In 1995 the airline purchased a Boeing 727-100 (ex-American Airlines N1974) named "Por Fin". This aircraft remais parked in Miami. The company wet-leased aircraft and crews from Falcon Air of Miami from October 1996 until July 1997,From July 1997 through September 1997 the Company Wet leased 727's (N12304 /N203AV )including crews from Nations Air Express based in Atlanta GA.Nation's Air flew routes between San Jose and Miami and Orlando during that time frame, After which it finally collapsed. Owner Calixto Chaves Zamora intended to sell the airline to a Pakistani company based in Miami and represented by a Cuban-American named Osiris Rosario. The check Chaves received had no funds and the company could not remain in business any longer.