Nonstop flight route between Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States and Shannon (County Clare), Ireland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between United States Air Force Academy (AFF), Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States and Shannon Airport (SNN), Shannon (County Clare), Ireland would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,362 miles (or 7,021 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 Shannon 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 Shannon 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 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 cadet social center is Arnold Hall, located just outside the Cadet Area, which houses a 3000-seat theater, a ballroom, a number of lounges, and dining and recreation facilities for cadets and visitors.
• 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.
• The Academy's permanent site had not yet been completed when the first class entered, so the 306 cadets from the Class of 1959 were sworn in at a temporary site at Lowry Air Force Base, in Denver on 11 July 1955.
• The Vietnam War was the first war in which Academy graduates fought and died.
• — "Honor Code Handbook"

Facts about Shannon Airport (SNN):

• During the 1990s, the airport began to struggle.
• It has been hinted that a route to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol or Frankfurt Airport could commence in 2015.
• Shannon Airport handled 1,400,032 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Shannon Airport (SNN) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is nearly antipodal to Shannon Airport (meaning Shannon Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ryan's Creek Aerodrome), and is located 12,015 miles (19,336 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• In addition to being known as "Shannon Airport", another name for SNN is "Aerfort na Sionainne".
• Shannon Airport (SNN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Shannon Airport (SNN) is Inisheer Aerodrome (INQ), which is located 35 miles (56 kilometers) NW of SNN.
• The first Air Services Agreement with the United States in 1945 only permitted flights to Shannon, and only permitted Irish airlines to serve Boston, Chicago, and New York.
• In 2011, passenger numbers at Shannon declined by 7.4% from 1,755,885, to 1,625,549.
• The longest runway in Ireland, at 3,199 metres, is located at Shannon.
• Because of Shannon Airport's relatively low elevation of 46 feet, planes can take off or land at Shannon 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.