Flight Report : SP 421 Sao Jorge - Ponta Delgada
8 July 2025 : 1050-1145

After completing my 4-island itinerary across the Azores, it is time to head back to the biggest island for the flight back to the European mainland. It's pretty much a pre-set standard price to fly between the islands. The only difference is whether you are a resident or not. SATA doesn't have a concept of Basic Economy on the inter-island routes with only 1 type of fare which already includes 23kg of checked baggage.
Booking a flight is also quite straight forward. Their website is quite easy to use but I ended up using an online travel agent as it was cheaper to buy two open-jaws together on the same itinerary than two one-ways with the airline directly, booking this flight along with this flight from Ponta Delgada to Horta.
Sao Jorge's airport is only a short 10 minute drive from Velas. However, like most of the islands, there is no public transport option to get there. Taxis charge a fixed fee of 9 euros from the town. It's actually quite transparent - the tourist information office has a sheet listing the fixed prices of various itineraries.

It's a very small airport with departures and arrivals on each end of the terminal. There wasn't much activity this morning, and arriving with an hour and a half before departure, I didn't have to line up for the counter to check in.
SATA fares include a 23kg checked bag although I couldn't change the pre-allocated seat during online check-in. After sending my case away, I took a walk outside to check out the surroundings. Sao Jorge has a very rugged landscape with steep cliffs leading to the coast, and many towns are perched on plains far above the sea.

After exploring the small town outside, I headed back into the terminal. By now, a sizeable crowd was waiting to check in. Some others were dining at the cafe and there are plenty of seats out here, with even a few computer desks close to the arrivals exit. We're the only departure at that hour so it looks like a decent loading today.

I decided to go through security before this crowd arrives. There is 1 lane but I only had to wait 2 people ahead of me to get through. There are no shops beyond this point - just a waiting lounge for the sole gate with washrooms on the side.
Checking online, I noticed my flight would be coming in from Terceira, a short 30 minute flight away and it is on time.
The turboprop landed at 10:15am and was the sole plane at this airport. After the arriving passengers cleared out, staff started assembling the special needs passengers to get ready for boarding. I had asked whether they had a window seat available, but the gate agent said she can't change it now.
Boarding was timely and as I passed through the gate, the agent recognized me and said the seating plan was reformatted and to look for a window seat on board. It was nice she got back to me!
After a short walk on the tarmac, I was on the back stairs going up to the aircraft.

The Dash-8 is laid out in a 2-2 configuration and I was in the aisle seat. It turns out my entire row was empty so I could choose 2 window seats as the doors closed.

The engines started up at 10:45am and we started moving 2 minutes later. Being the only plane around, it was a short taxi to the eastern end of the runway to take off into the clouds at 10:49am. I've had quite decent weather across the Azores over the past 2 weeks and this is a rare day with slightly more substantial rain.

As we looped around and the airport came into the view, the clouds started rolling in and I wasn't able to see more of Sao Jorge's incredible coastline and mountains.

The flight was uneventful with no service provided and soon, we started descending into Ponta Delgada. The crew made their rounds to check we are secured as we made a few small turns and it seems we'll be landing from the east. Having sat on the right side for my flight from Lisbon 2 weeks earlier, I stayed in my left window to see what could be in store. Well, there wasn't much to see as we made final approach, flying over the city centre with the best views on the right side.

We landed ahead of schedule at 11:30am and staff on the ground guided us into the terminal building, stopping us for moving vehicles on the tarmac along the way. We had to wait a little longer for our checked bags but nothing too substantial. There are only 2 belts here and a few more aircraft on the ground.

I was able to exit into the arrivals hall around noon. From here, it's a short 10 minute ride into the city centre.
Overall, I was quite happy with my 2nd inter-island turboprop flight.


After completing my 4-island itinerary across the Azores, it is time to head back to the biggest island for the flight back to the European mainland. It's pretty much a pre-set standard price to fly between the islands. The only difference is whether you are a resident or not. SATA doesn't have a concept of Basic Economy on the inter-island routes with only 1 type of fare which already includes 23kg of checked baggage. Booking a flight is also quite straight forward. Their website is quite easy to use but I ended up using an online travel agent as it was cheaper to buy two open-jaws together on the same itinerary than two one-ways with the airline directly, booking this flight along with this flight from Ponta Delgada to Horta. Sao Jorge's airport is only a short 10 minute drive from Velas. However, like most of the islands, there is no public transport option to get there. Taxis charge a fixed fee of 9 euros from the town. It's actually quite transparent - the tourist information office has a sheet listing the fixed prices of various itineraries. It's a very small airport with departures and arrivals on each end of the terminal. There wasn't much activity this morning, and arriving with an hour and a half before departure, I didn't have to line up for the counter to check in. SATA fares include a 23kg checked bag although I couldn't change the pre-allocated seat during online check-in. After sending my case away, I took a walk outside to check out the surroundings. Sao Jorge has a very rugged landscape with steep cliffs leading to the coast, and many towns are perched on plains far above the sea. After exploring the small town outside, I headed back into the terminal. By now, a sizeable crowd was waiting to check in. Some others were dining at the cafe and there are plenty of seats out here, with even a few computer desks close to the arrivals exit. We're the only departure at that hour so it looks like a decent loading today. I decided to go through security before this crowd arrives. There is 1 lane but I only had to wait 2 people ahead of me to get through. There are no shops beyond this point - just a waiting lounge for the sole gate with washrooms on the side. Checking online, I noticed my flight would be coming in from Terceira, a short 30 minute flight away and it is on time. The turboprop landed at 10:15am and was the sole plane at this airport. After the arriving passengers cleared out, staff started assembling the special needs passengers to get ready for boarding. I had asked whether they had a window seat available, but the gate agent said she can't change it now. Boarding was timely and as I passed through the gate, the agent recognized me and said the seating plan was reformatted and to look for a window seat on board. It was nice she got back to me! After a short walk on the tarmac, I was on the back stairs going up to the aircraft. The Dash-8 is laid out in a 2-2 configuration and I was in the aisle seat. It turns out my entire row was empty so I could choose 2 window seats as the doors closed. The engines started up at 10:45am and we started moving 2 minutes later. Being the only plane around, it was a short taxi to the eastern end of the runway to take off into the clouds at 10:49am. I've had quite decent weather across the Azores over the past 2 weeks and this is a rare day with slightly more substantial rain. As we looped around and the airport came into the view, the clouds started rolling in and I wasn't able to see more of Sao Jorge's incredible coastline and mountains. The flight was uneventful with no service provided and soon, we started descending into Ponta Delgada. The crew made their rounds to check we are secured as we made a few small turns and it seems we'll be landing from the east. Having sat on the right side for my flight from Lisbon 2 weeks earlier, I stayed in my left window to see what could be in store. Well, there wasn't much to see as we made final approach, flying over the city centre with the best views on the right side. We landed ahead of schedule at 11:30am and staff on the ground guided us into the terminal building, stopping us for moving vehicles on the tarmac along the way. We had to wait a little longer for our checked bags but nothing too substantial. There are only 2 belts here and a few more aircraft on the ground. I was able to exit into the arrivals hall around noon. From here, it's a short 10 minute ride into the city centre. Overall, I was quite happy with my 2nd inter-island turboprop flight.