Nonstop flight route between Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States and Santa Maria, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ), Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States and Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX), Santa Maria, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 783 miles (or 1,261 kilometers).

A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the relatively short distance between Albuquerque International Sunport and Santa Maria Public Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ):

• A major new part of Albuquerque called Mesa del Sol is being developed 5 miles south of Albuquerque International Sunport and is planned to house 100,000 inhabitants by 2055.
• Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ) has 4 runways.
• Albuquerque International Sunport has one terminal with 24 gates in three concourses, including a concourse for commuter airline gates.
• In addition to being known as "Albuquerque International Sunport", another name for ABQ is "Albuquerque".
• The closest airport to Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ) is Santa Fe Municipal Airport (SAF), which is located 50 miles (80 kilometers) NE of ABQ.
• Albuquerque International Sunport handled 5,801,641 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,217 miles (18,051 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Because of Albuquerque International Sunport's high elevation of 5,355 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at ABQ. Combined with a high temperature, this could make ABQ a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.

Facts about Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX):

• The closest airport to Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) is Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) SSW of SMX.
• In addition to being known as "Santa Maria Public Airport", another name for SMX is "Capt. G. Allan Hancock FieldSanta Maria Army Airfield".
• The airport was built by the United States Army during World War II, known as Santa Maria Army Air Field.
• The furthest airport from Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,466 miles (18,453 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• During its use by the military Santa Maria AAF also controlled Estrella Army Airfield, near Paso Robles as an auxiliary airfield to support the pilot training activity.
• The extended primary runway at Santa Maria is paved to 8,004 feet, giving the airport the longest civil runway between Los Angeles and San Francisco on the central coast and Vandenberg AFB's runway are longer).
• Because of Santa Maria Public Airport's relatively low elevation of 261 feet, planes can take off or land at Santa Maria Public Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• A runway extension opened on May 3, 2012, from 6,304 ft.
• Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) has 2 runways.