San Luis Aerodrome ( es, Aeródromo de San Luis) was the first civil airfield on

Menorca Menorca or Minorca (from la, Insula Minor, , smaller island, later ''Minorica'') is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with nearby Majorca. Its capi ...

. Originally built during the 1920s it was converted for military aircraft activities during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

. The airfield is located in the

Sant Lluís Sant Lluís (in Spanish: San Luis) is a municipality on the tip of south-east Menorca in the Spanish Balearic Islands. The area is most noteworthy for its varied coastline, with fine sand beaches and cliffs, and the beautiful coves of Binissafú ...

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

in close proximity to

Mahón Mahón (), officially Maó (), and also written as Mahon or Port Mahon in English, is the capital and second largest city of Menorca. The city is located on the eastern coast of the island, which is part of the archipelago and autonomous communi ...

(only 2½ km from the town centre). During 1949, San Luis was equipped as a customs airport and opened to domestic and international traffic in August. Over the following decade, the airport traffic increased which facilitated two extensions of the runway. However the airport could neither accommodate larger aircraft nor could the runway be extended. In 1967, San Luis was assigned to Real Aero Club de Mahón Menorca (Royal Mahon Flying Club) and since then this entity has been responsible for the conservation and maintenance of the facilities of the Pilot and Aeromodelling School. All civilian services were transferred to the island's newly constructed main airport on March 24, 1969. Today it is primarily used for general and leisure aviation, with approximately 3,000 flights per year.

Aeronautical Fleet

''San Luis Aerodrome'' has a fleet of five light aircraft: *

Cessna 172 The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is an American four-seat, single-engine, high wing, fixed-wing aircraft made by the Cessna Aircraft Company.

N with a Lycoming 170 hp engine. * Cessna 150 Aerobat with a Continental Rolls-Royce O-240A 125 hp engine. * Aisa I-11-B with a Continental C-90 hp engine (first flight in 1953). *

AISA I-115 The AISA I-115 is a low-wing single-engined military primary trainer with tandem seating, which went into service with the Spanish Air Force in 1956. After retirement in 1976 many were sold to civil operators. Development The AISA I-115 was a m ...

with an ENMA Tigre 150 hp engine (first flight in 1952). * Bücker Jungmann, German plane of war of Spanish manufacture with an ENMA Tigre G-IV 125 hp engine, used nowadays for acrobatic flights (first flight in 1950).

External links

Aeroclub de Menorca
*Aeroclub Menorc

{{Spain-airport-stub Airports in the Balearic Islands

Airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...