Nonstop flight route between Biggin Hill / London, England, United Kingdom and San Jose, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH), Biggin Hill / London, England, United Kingdom and Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC), San Jose, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,377 miles (or 8,654 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 London Biggin Hill Airport and Norman Y. Mineta San Jose 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 London Biggin Hill Airport and Norman Y. Mineta San Jose 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 London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH):

• London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH) has 2 runways.
• Despite the effective ban on scheduled services, Biggin Hill is used by a large number of business flights by business jets and similar sized aircraft.
• In the grounds of the airport an Air Scout centre can be found.
• After the war, Biggin Hill was briefly used by the RAF's Transport Command, and then became a base for both regular and reserve fighter squadrons, flying Spitfires, Meteors and Hunters.
• In May 1992 the Department of Transport issued a direction to the Council under s.13 of the Airports Act 1986.
• In addition to being known as "London Biggin Hill Airport", another name for BQH is "Biggin Hill Airport".
• The furthest airport from London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,892 miles (19,139 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The current RAF Biggin Hill is a small enclave on the western boundary of the airport to the south of the passenger terminal, and contains the headquarters of 2427 Squadron of the Air Training Corps.
• The closest airport to London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH) is Redhill Aerodrome (KRH), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SW of BQH.
• Because of London Biggin Hill Airport's relatively low elevation of 599 feet, planes can take off or land at London Biggin 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.

Facts about Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC):

• Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC) is Reid-Hillview Airport of Santa Clara County (RHV), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) ESE of SJC.
• The furthest airport from Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,363 miles (18,287 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• SJC suffered with many mid-tier airports during the 2008 rise in oil prices as airlines reduced marginal services.
• Because of Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport's relatively low elevation of 62 feet, planes can take off or land at Norman Y. Mineta San Jose 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.
• In the summer of 2009 American Airlines ended flights to Austin, Texas.
• San Jose's first airline flights were Southwest Airways DC-3s on the multistop run between San Francisco and Los Angeles, starting in 1948.
• Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport handled 8,357,384 passengers last year.
• In December 2011, All Nippon Airways announced it would begin service between San Jose and Tokyo in 2012, restoring the link between the two cities that was lost when American ended the route in 2006.