Nonstop flight route between Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia and Lajes, Azores, Portugal:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Broken Hill Airport (BHQ), Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia and Lajes Air Base (TER), Lajes, Azores, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 11,642 miles (or 18,736 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 Broken Hill Airport and Lajes Air Base, 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 Broken Hill Airport and Lajes Air Base. 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 Broken Hill Airport (BHQ):

• Because of Broken Hill Airport's relatively low elevation of 959 feet, planes can take off or land at Broken Hill 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.
• The airport currently is used as a base of operations for the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia South-Eastern section thus making it a very important hub for this service.
• The closest airport to Broken Hill Airport (BHQ) is Mildura Airport (MQL), which is located 158 miles (254 kilometers) SSE of BHQ.
• Broken Hill Airport (BHQ) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Broken Hill Airport (BHQ) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is located 11,776 miles (18,951 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
• Broken Hill Airport handled 63,098 passengers last year.

Facts about Lajes Air Base (TER):

• Lajes Air Base (TER) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Lajes Air Base (TER) is Merimbula Airport (MIM), which is nearly antipodal to Lajes Air Base (meaning Lajes Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Merimbula Airport), and is located 12,229 miles (19,680 kilometers) away in Merimbula, New South Wales, Australia.
• Another important Cold War operation at Lajes was the U.S.
• The closest airport to Lajes Air Base (TER) is Graciosa Airport (GRW), which is located 55 miles (89 kilometers) WNW of TER.
• By 1943, the British and American armed forces were allowed basing rights in Portugal, and the Royal Air Force took over Lajes Field as RAF Station Lajes.
• In addition to being known as "Lajes Air Base", other names for TER include "Base Aérea das Lajes", "Base Aérea Nº 4" and "Aeroporto das Lajes".
• Because of Lajes Air Base's relatively low elevation of 180 feet, planes can take off or land at Lajes Air Base 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.
• In 1980, an earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale struck Terceira Island.
• In 1947, the Portuguese Esquadra 41 started to operate from Lajes, equipped with Boeing SB-17, Grumman HU-16 Albatross, Douglas C-54 Skymaster and, later Sikorsky H-19.
• The civilian terminal also plays an important role in support of passenger and cargo airliners, executive, corporate and private jets flying to the island or beyond as the central location in the Azores group of islands makes it an ideal spot for refuelling or stopover.
• During World War II, the designation of the airfield was changed to Air Base No.4 and the Portuguese government expanded the runway, sending troops and equipment to Terceira, including Gloster Gladiator fighters.
• On 14 December 2012 it was announced that personnel at Lajes Field will be reduced in 2014 with a reduction of 400 military personnel and 500 family members.