Nonstop flight route between St Andrews, Scotland, United Kingdom and Santa Maria, California, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from ADX to SMX:
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- About this route
- ADX Airport Information
- SMX Airport Information
- Facts about ADX
- Facts about SMX
- Map of Nearest Airports to ADX
- List of Nearest Airports to ADX
- Map of Furthest Airports from ADX
- List of Furthest Airports from ADX
- Map of Nearest Airports to SMX
- List of Nearest Airports to SMX
- Map of Furthest Airports from SMX
- List of Furthest Airports from SMX
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Leuchars (ADX), St Andrews, Scotland, United Kingdom and Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX), Santa Maria, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,152 miles (or 8,292 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 large distance between RAF Leuchars and Santa Maria Public Airport, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.
Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between RAF Leuchars and Santa Maria Public Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | ADX / EGQL |
| Airport Name: | RAF Leuchars |
| Location: | St Andrews, Scotland, United Kingdom |
| GPS Coordinates: | 56°22'23"N by 2°52'6"W |
| Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Defence |
| View all routes: | Routes from ADX |
| More Information: | ADX Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SMX / KSMX |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Santa Maria, California, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 34°53'56"N by 120°27'26"W |
| Area Served: | Santa Maria, California |
| Operator/Owner: | Santa Maria Public Airport District |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 261 feet (80 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from SMX |
| More Information: | SMX Maps & Info |
Facts about RAF Leuchars (ADX):
- Leuchars remained an active Station to the end of the War, concentrating on anti-submarine and anti-shipping strikes.
- The closest airport to RAF Leuchars (ADX) is Dundee Airport (DND), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) NW of ADX.
- Aviation at Leuchars dates back to 1911 with a balloon squadron of the Royal Engineers setting up a training camp in Tentsmuir Forest.
- In 2015 the army will take over and The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards will move in along with a REME Battalion and a Provost Company.
- The unit was formally named 'Royal Air Force Leuchars' in March 1920, but nevertheless retained its strong naval links.
- On 4 September 1939, a Lockheed Hudson of No.
- The Phantoms of 43 Squadron and 111 Squadron were replaced by Tornado F3s during 1989-1990s.
- The furthest airport from RAF Leuchars (ADX) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,678 miles (18,793 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
Facts about Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX):
- Other enhancements include a new passenger terminal holding room that opened February 2008.
- Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) has 2 runways.
- At one point during the early 1980's Swift Aire Lines, which was based at the nearby San Luis Obispo Airport, was the only airline flying nonstop between Santa Maria and Los Angeles, primarily with Fokker F27 Friendship turboprops which the carrier had purchased new from the manufacturer.
- 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 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.
- 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.
