Pope Leo XIV left Rome-Fiumicino airport on Friday morning aboard an ITA Airways Airbus A330-900 bound for Montevideo, opening an 11-day apostolic tour that will take him to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru. The Vatican said the aircraft departed at 7:05 local time, and Clarin.com reports the flight of roughly twelve and a half hours was due to land in the Uruguayan capital at 17:30.
The trip is the Pope's sixth apostolic journey to Latin America and, by the reckoning of the outlets covering it, the most demanding of his pontificate. According to Clarin.com, he will cover more than 30,000 kilometres, take 14 flights including two by helicopter, stop in ten cities and carry out at least 47 engagements such as Masses, prayers and meetings. The schedule also includes 16 speeches and 13 homilies.
Why it matters
Two features set this journey apart. The first is its itinerary: Argentina and Uruguay are the only countries in the region that Pope Francis did not visit during his twelve years as pontiff, and Clarin.com reports that Leo XIV's decision to include both is intended to make up for that gap. The second is the Pope's personal tie to the region. Before being called to the Vatican by Francis, he spent two decades as a missionary and then as bishop of Chiclayo in Peru, which he will visit at the end of the tour. Clarin.com describes Peru as a predictable destination for that reason.
The visit also lands in a politically charged Argentine climate. Church leaders have stressed that the trip is religious in nature and have said repeatedly that while the Pope will address political and social questions, he will do so through the lens of Catholic social teaching and without aiming his remarks at any individual. Clarin.com frames that emphasis as a precaution against attempts to use his words for partisan purposes, particularly in relation to President Javier Milei. As the Argentine bishops have put it, in the outlet's account, the Pope will speak to all Argentines.
A lighter medical footprint than expected
Clarin.com reports that Leo XIV will travel without any special medical equipment beyond what papal trips normally carry, following a swift recovery that allowed him to return to South America. Sources at the Holy See told the outlet that he will not need treatment, consistent with earlier statements from his personal physician, Luigi Carbone, and from Stefano Margaritora, the surgeon who operated on him.
The papal plane is carrying about 70 people, among them clergy, the Pope's doctor and security personnel, according to Clarin.com. Roughly 75 journalists from outlets around the world are also on board for the first leg. Before boarding, the Pope greeted people still on the tarmac at Leonardo da Vinci airport, a moment captured in images circulated from the departure.
What to watch
The first stop is Uruguay, which Clarin.com notes is the least religious country in Latin America, making the Montevideo arrival and the Pope's early engagements there an unusual opening for a trip of this scale. Coverage of the tour has also highlighted the visit's reach beyond the capital cities: Vatican News reported on comments from Father Coimbra that Casavalle, a neighbourhood in Montevideo, is moving from the margins to the heart of the Church's attention.
Ahead of the journey, the Pope said he hoped the trip would strengthen the faith of those he meets, remarks reported by Diario El Día de La Plata. The tour runs through Argentina after the brief Uruguayan stop and concludes in Peru.
With the Pope now airborne and due in Montevideo on Friday afternoon, the coming days will show how the tightly packed programme holds up in practice, and how his addresses are received in Argentina, where the Church has worked to keep the visit framed as a purely religious occasion.
