Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport

SCL SCEL  Santiago, Chile

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SCL at a glance

  • What it is: Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport is a major international airport serving Santiago, Chile.
  • Codes: SCL on your ticket, SCEL on the radar.
  • How busy: the reference profile lists about 26.2 million annual passengers across 2 runways.
  • Main airline: LATAM Airlines bases aircraft here.
  • Right now: 5 aircraft are within 55 km, shown live on the map above.
  • Local time zone: America/Santiago (UTC-4), so every time shown for SCL is local rather than UTC.

Aircraft observed near SCL

5 aircraft are within 55 km of SCL right now. This is live ADS-B traffic, not a published timetable: aircraft are classified by what they are physically doing - Climbing out, on approach, or holding at cruise overhead. For gate numbers and scheduled times, check with SCL directly or your airline.

Departing now

FlightOperatorRouteStatusAltitudeSpeed
LXP201 — route not published climbing out 8,900 ft 303 kts
LPE2696 — route not published climbing out 14,650 ft 299 kts

Arriving now

FlightOperatorRouteStatusAltitudeSpeed
N221GK — route not published on approach 8,000 ft 236 kts
CCPRH — route not published on approach 2,350 ft 98 kts

Overhead and in the area

FlightOperatorRouteStatusAltitudeSpeed
VENENO — route not published in the area 22,025 ft 357 kts
26.2M
Annual passengers (reference)
2
Runways
2
Terminals
1555 ft
Field elevation

About SCL

Chile's main airport and the home base of the LATAM group, framed by the Andes east of Santiago. A large new international terminal opened in 2022, quadrupling capacity. It is the principal gateway for routes to Patagonia, Easter Island and Antarctica logistics.

Santiago's Arturo Merino Benítez International opened in 1967 in the Pudahuel district west of the capital, replacing the hemmed-in Los Cerrillos airfield as Chile's principal gateway. It carries the name of Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez, the visionary founder of both the Chilean Air Force and the national airline that became LAN Chile. A dedicated international terminal opened in 1994 as Chile's export-driven economy took off. The airport grew alongside LAN's transformation from state carrier to privatized regional powerhouse.

Because Chile is a ribbon of a country walled off by the Andes, almost all of its long-haul traffic funnels through Santiago. The airport became the hub of LATAM Airlines after LAN's 2012 merger with Brazil's TAM, as well as home to low-cost challengers Sky Airline and JetSmart.

A major concession-led expansion delivered the large new Terminal 2 for international flights, opened in stages during 2021 and 2022, roughly doubling the airport's capacity while the original building became a domestic terminal. Santiago now offers nonstop flights to North America, Europe, Oceania. The South Pacific, including the storied link to Easter Island, one of the most isolated scheduled destinations on the planet.

How SCL operates today

Santiago operates two parallel runways beneath the Andes' western wall, with the new Terminal 2 handling international flights and the refurbished original terminal dedicated to domestic traffic. LATAM runs its largest hub here, connecting Chilean cities and Easter Island with long-haul flights to the Americas, Europe, and Oceania, while Sky Airline and JetSmart battle for the domestic and regional low-cost market.

Morning fog in the central valley occasionally slows arrivals, and eastbound departures climb quickly to clear the mountains. Fresh salmon, fruit, and wine make the cargo terminal a significant perishables exporter.

Top routes from SCL

DestinationMain airlinesWhy it matters
Lima (LIM) LATAM, Sky Airline, JetSmart The busiest international route from Chile, linking two Pacific coast hubs.
Buenos Aires (EZE) LATAM, Aerolíneas Argentinas, JetSmart The trans-Andean shuttle between neighboring capitals is a regional classic.
São Paulo (GRU) LATAM Ties Santiago into South America's largest economy and LATAM's Brazilian network.
Miami (MIA) LATAM, American Airlines The traditional gateway route to the United States for Chilean travelers and cargo.
Easter Island (IPC) LATAM One of aviation's most iconic routes, serving the world-famous moai statues across open ocean.

Facts about SCL

  • The airport is named for Arturo Merino Benítez, founder of both the Chilean Air Force and the airline that became LAN Chile, ancestor of LATAM.
  • It is the gateway to Easter Island, one of the most remote regularly served airports in the world, more than 3,700 kilometers out in the Pacific.
  • A new international terminal opened in 2021-2022 roughly doubled the airport's passenger capacity.
  • Because of Chile's extreme geography, nearly all of the country's intercontinental flights operate through this single airport.

Plane spotting at SCL

Spotters use roads and open ground along the airport's northern and western perimeter for arrivals against the Andes backdrop, and the terminal windows frame LATAM widebodies with snowcapped peaks behind. New to spotting? Start with our aircraft identification guide and the world's best spotting airports.

IATA / ICAO
SCL / SCEL
Location
Santiago, Chile -33.393, -70.786
Time zone
America/Santiago
Opened
1967
Hub for
LATAM Airlines, Sky Airline, JetSmart
Website
www.nuevopudahuel.cl

Airlines hubbed at SCL

LA · LAN LATAM Airlines Chile

Tracked flights using SCL

Selected scheduled services whose curated route starts, ends or stops at Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport.

FlightRouteTypical aircraft
LA800 SCL → AKL Boeing 787-9Track LA800 →
LA841 SCL → IPC Boeing 787-9Track LA841 →
LA705 SCL → MAD Boeing 787-9Track LA705 →
LA500 SCL → MIA Boeing 787-9Track LA500 →

Nearby and related airports

Geographically close airports and useful alternatives in Chile.

EZE Ministro Pistarini International Airport Buenos Aires, Argentina LIM Jorge Chávez International Airport Lima, Peru CGH São Paulo/Congonhas Airport São Paulo, Brazil IPC Mataveri International Airport Hanga Roa, Chile

More airports and guides connected to SCL

Most of the tails you see here belong to LATAM Airlines. How a field like this runs day to day is covered in how airports work. Nearby, Hanga Roa (IPC) serves the same country. The codes SCL and SCEL are explained in airport codes decoded.

Data sources and review

Reviewed 2026-07-29 by Flight-Tracker.net Editorial Team

Passenger, runway, terminal and hub figures are maintained as a reviewed reference snapshot, not a live operational record. Check the airport directly before travelling.

Read our airport data sourcing and review process, or inspect the machine-readable reference dataset.

Frequently asked questions about SCL

What is the airport code for Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport?

Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport uses the IATA code SCL on tickets and baggage tags, and the ICAO code SCEL in flight plans and on radar. The leading “S” in SCEL is the region marker: ICAO codes are grouped geographically, which is why airports near each other usually share their first letter or two while their IATA codes look unrelated.

How many runways does SCL have?

Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport operates 2 runways across 2 passenger terminals. The field sits at 1,555 ft above sea level.

How busy is SCL?

This reference profile lists roughly 26.2 million annual passengers for Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport. You can see aircraft observed departing, arriving and overhead on this page, taken from live ADS-B broadcasts.

Which airlines are based at SCL?

LATAM Airlines treat SCL as a hub or major base. Many other carriers serve the airport without basing aircraft there.

How many terminals does SCL have?

This reference lists Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport with 2 passenger terminals. Check the airport or operating airline for the terminal assigned to a specific flight.

What time zone is SCL in?

Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport runs on America/Santiago, currently UTC-4. Flight trackers work in UTC internally, so the seven-day history on our flight pages is stamped UTC while the boards on this page are in SCL local time - worth remembering when the two disagree by a whole calendar day.

Can I track flights at SCL live?

Yes. The map on this page shows every aircraft broadcasting its position within about 55 km of Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport, and there are 5 in range as this page loaded. The boards split them into departures, arrivals and traffic passing overhead, all timed in America/Santiago.