Transport in Madeira introduced by Robert Reid Kalley in the 19th century. The islands have two airports, one in Santa Cruz (known as Funchal Airport (FNC)) on the Island of Madeira and the other in the city of Vila Baleira on Porto Santo Island. Flights to the islands are mostly made from Lisbon and Porto, but there are also direct flights from other major European cities and other countries, like Brazil, Venezuela and South Africa. The first seaplane to land in Madeira was Felixstowe F.3, captained Carlos Viegas Gago Coutinho by on 22 March 1921, Madeira then had regular Seaplane services from 1949
Madeira over 6,000 "arrobas" (an "arroba" was equal to 11 to 12 kilograms) by 1455, using advisers from Sicily and financed by Genoese capital. (Genoa acted as an integral part of the island economy until the 17th century.) The accessibility of Madeira attracted Genoese and Flemish traders, who were keen to bypass Venetian monopolies. Sugarcane production was the primary engine of the island's economy, increasing the demand for labour. African slaves were used during portions of the island's history to cultivate sugar cane, and the proportion of imported slaves reached 10% of the total population of Madeira by the 16th century.