Hercilio Luz International Airport (FLN)

Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz International Airport is the airport serving Florianópolis, Brazil. It is named after Hercílio Pedro da Luz, 3 times Governor of Santa Catarina and senator.

The airport was built on the site of an old Air Naval Base, which operated until 1941, when its jurisdiction changed to the Brazilian Air Force. Between 1927 and 1932, the then known as Campeche Field was also used by the French aviators of the Compagnie Générale Aéropostale for its operations in Florianópolis. Among them were Jean Mermoz, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Henri Guillaumet.

Between 1942 and 1945 the runway 03/21, apron, control tower and passenger terminal were built. At the same time, some facilities of the Florianópolis Air Force Base were built and made operational.

In the period between 1952 and 1954 the passenger terminal was rebuilt and was operational until 1976 when a brand-new terminal building and apron were opened. The old facility is today the cargo terminal. The new terminal was further enlarged in 1988 and 2000, reaching the present 8,703 m².

In 1978 the runway 14/32 was opened allowing a great increase in traffic. In 1995 the airport was upgraded to international category and started receiving particularly seasonal and charter flights from Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay.