---
title: "SCL is which airport? Santiago"
description: "SCL is Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport in Santiago, Chile. Why the code is SCL and not something you could guess, plus the codes it gets mixed up with."
url: https://atoneplace.net/airport/scl/
site: "At One Place"
---

# What airport is SCL?

**SCL is: Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport**

Santiago, Chile

## Why the code is SCL

SantiagoChiLe.

This is the explanation in general circulation and it is very likely right, but no primary document has been published that settles it. Treated as an account rather than a fact.

## The airport

- **IATA code:** SCL
- **ICAO code:** SCEL
- **Airport:** Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport
- **City:** Santiago, Chile
- **Code origin:** The usual account, unverified

Santiago sits in a basin between the Andes and the coastal range, and the approach over the mountains on a clear day is one of the more spectacular in commercial aviation. Chile's ICAO prefix SC produces the near-palindrome SCEL.

## The other code, SCEL

Every airport has two codes. The three-letter IATA code, SCL, is the one on your boarding pass and your luggage tag, and it is assigned for commercial use. The four-letter ICAO code, SCEL, is the one pilots and controllers use, and it is assigned geographically: the first letter or two identify the region, so every airport in the same part of the world shares a prefix. That is why SCEL looks nothing like SCL.

## Common questions

### What airport is SCL?

Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport, in Santiago, Chile.

### Why is Santiago's airport called SCL?

SantiagoChiLe.

### What is the difference between SCL and SCEL?

SCL is the IATA code, used commercially — tickets, timetables, luggage tags. SCEL is the ICAO code, used operationally by pilots and air traffic control, and assigned geographically by region.

## Related pages

- [Chile](https://atoneplace.net/country/chile/)
- [The flag of Chile](https://atoneplace.net/flag/chile/)
- [Airport codes in Chile](https://atoneplace.net/airport/in/chile/)

## Sources

- OurAirports — OurAirports (https://ourairports.com/data/) [Public domain]