Nonstop flight route between Big Spring, Texas, United States and Lisbon, Portugal:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS), Big Spring, Texas, United States and Lisbon Portela Airport (LIS), Lisbon, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,986 miles (or 8,023 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield and Lisbon Portela 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield and Lisbon Portela 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS):

• The furthest airport from Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,166 miles (17,969 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• In August 1972, ATC established a pilot instructor training course for Vietnamese Air Force instructors at Webb AFB, Texas.
• Activated on 26 June 1942, the mission of Big Spring AAF was to train aviation cadets in high altitude precision bombing as bombardiers.
• Emblem of the AAF Bombardier School Big Spring AAF
• In 1956, the Air Defense Command 331st Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was transferred to Webb from Stewart Air Force Base in New York to defend the southern United States border on air intercept missions as part of the Central Air Defense Force.
• At Webb AFB, the last two pilot training classes completed course work on 30 August 1977, and fixed wing qualification training ended on 1 September 1977.
• The closest airport to Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Midland Airpark (MDD), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) WSW of BGS.

Facts about Lisbon Portela Airport (LIS):

• Because of Lisbon Portela Airport's relatively low elevation of 374 feet, planes can take off or land at Lisbon Portela 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.
• Lisbon Portela Airport handled 16,024,955 passengers last year.
• With the long-term concession of ANA – Aeroportos de Portugal to the French group Vinci Airports the project for a new airport was postponed in July 2013, and it was decided that the existing Lisbon Airport would be further upgraded to surpass 20 million passengers annually, and would remain the present solution for this major European gateway.
• The closest airport to Lisbon Portela Airport (LIS) is Beja Airport (BYJ), which is located 81 miles (130 kilometers) SE of LIS.
• Lisbon airport has an underground Metro de Lisboa station at the Southern edge of the Terminal 1 arrivals area.
• Lisbon Portela Airport (LIS) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Lisbon Portela Airport", another name for LIS is "Aeroporto da Portela".
• Lisbon Airport has two runways, both served by parallel taxiways for higher traffic use, and capable of accommodating large-size aircraft such as the Boeing 747-400.
• The furthest airport from Lisbon Portela Airport (LIS) is New Plymouth Airport (NPL), which is nearly antipodal to Lisbon Portela Airport (meaning Lisbon Portela Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from New Plymouth Airport), and is located 12,258 miles (19,727 kilometers) away in New Plymouth, New Zealand.
• A major upgrade in 1959–62 included a new runway capable of taking the first generation jets, Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8.