Nonstop flight route between Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States and Funchal, Madeira, Portugal:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between United States Air Force Academy (AFF), Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States and Madeira Airport (FNC), Funchal, Madeira, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,753 miles (or 7,649 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 United States Air Force Academy and Madeira 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 United States Air Force Academy and Madeira Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about United States Air Force Academy (AFF):

• The ‘‘Core Values Ramp’‘ leads down from the main Terrazzo level toward the parade field.
• Following the recommendation of the Board, Congress passed legislation in 1954 to begin the construction of the Air Force Academy, and President Eisenhower signed it into law on 1 April of that year.
• Many of the women from those early classes went on to achieve success within the Cadet Wing and after graduation.
• The furthest airport from United States Air Force Academy (AFF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,934 miles (17,596 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to United States Air Force Academy (AFF) is City of Colorado Springs Municipal Airport (COS), which is located only 15 miles (25 kilometers) SSE of AFF.
• Cadets are considered the "guardians and stewards" of the Code.

Facts about Madeira Airport (FNC):

• Madeira Airport handled 2,311,380 passengers last year.
• The airport was once infamous for its short runway which, surrounded by high mountains and the ocean, made it a tricky landing for even the most experienced of pilots.
• Madeira Airport, formerly known as Santa Catarina Airport and informally known as Funchal Airport, is an international airport in the civil parish of Santa Catarina, municipality of Santa Cruz, in the Portuguese archipelago of the Madeira.
• The furthest airport from Madeira Airport (FNC) is Lord Howe Island Airport (LDH), which is nearly antipodal to Madeira Airport (meaning Madeira Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Lord Howe Island Airport), and is located 12,181 miles (19,604 kilometers) away in Lord Howe Island, New South Wales, Australia.
• Funchal Airport is 13.2 km east-northeast of the regional capital Funchal.
• Because of Madeira Airport's relatively low elevation of 190 feet, planes can take off or land at Madeira 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.
• Between 1982 and 1986, Madeira's runway was successfully extended by 200 m to a total of 1,800 m, and also four gates were opened.
• Madeira Airport (FNC) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Madeira Airport (FNC) is Porto Santo Airport (PXO), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) NE of FNC.
• In addition to being known as "Madeira Airport", another name for FNC is "Aeroporto da Madeira".
• In 2000, the runway was again extended this time to 2,781 m almost doubling the size of the original runway.
• In 1972, the popularity of visiting the island of Madeira increased, so the runway had to be extended to allow modern and larger aircraft to land.