Nonstop flight route between Bastia, Corsica, France and Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, Kingdom of the Netherlands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bastia – Poretta Airport (BIA), Bastia, Corsica, France and Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM), Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, Kingdom of the Netherlands would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,507 miles (or 7,253 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 Bastia – Poretta Airport and Princess Juliana International 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 Bastia – Poretta Airport and Princess Juliana International 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 Bastia – Poretta Airport (BIA):

• Bastia – Poretta Airport (BIA) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Bastia – Poretta Airport (BIA) is Calvi - Sainte-Catherine Airport (CLY), which is located 35 miles (57 kilometers) W of BIA.
• Because of Bastia – Poretta Airport's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at Bastia – Poretta 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.
• In addition to being known as "Bastia – Poretta Airport", another name for BIA is "Aéroport de Bastia Poretta".
• The furthest airport from Bastia – Poretta Airport (BIA) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Bastia – Poretta Airport (meaning Bastia – Poretta Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,125 miles (19,513 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.

Facts about Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM):

• Because the approach to Runway 10 is over water, pilots can become disoriented regarding their perceived altitude when operating under visual flight rules.
• Because of Princess Juliana International Airport's relatively low elevation of 14 feet, planes can take off or land at Princess Juliana International 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.
• Phase I was a short-term program in order to upgrade existing facilities and improve the level of service at various points.
• The new four-story terminal building offers 27,000 square metres of floor space and is fully air-conditioned.
• The furthest airport from Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) is Karratha Airport (KTA), which is nearly antipodal to Princess Juliana International Airport (meaning Princess Juliana International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Karratha Airport), and is located 12,252 miles (19,718 kilometers) away in Karratha / Dampier, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) is L'Espérance Airport Grand Case Airport (CCE), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) NE of SXM.
• Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) currently has only 1 runway.
• Although the airport is as close to the beach as it is, there have only been 2 major accidents.
• However, the oil price increases since 2003 began impacting discretionary air travel worldwide by early 2008, and the prospect of further price increases threatens to reverse the recent expansion of tourist travel by jet which began with the 1980s oil glut.