Nonstop flight route between West Columbia (near Columbia), South Carolina, United States and Santa Maria, Portugal:
Departure Airport:
(33°56'20"N by 81°7'9"W)
Arrival Airport:
(36°58'26"N by 25°10'15"W)
Distance from CAE to SMA:
3,110.22 miles (5,005.40 km)
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Jump to:
- About this route
- CAE Airport Information
- SMA Airport Information
- Facts about CAE
- Facts about SMA
- Map of Nearest Airports to CAE
- List of Nearest Airports to CAE
- Map of Furthest Airports from CAE
- List of Furthest Airports from CAE
- Map of Nearest Airports to SMA
- List of Nearest Airports to SMA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SMA
- List of Furthest Airports from SMA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE), West Columbia (near Columbia), South Carolina, United States and Santa Maria Airport (SMA), Santa Maria, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,110 miles (or 5,005 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 Columbia Metropolitan Airport and Santa Maria 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 Columbia Metropolitan Airport and Santa Maria Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | CAE / KCAE |
| Airport Name: | Columbia Metropolitan Airport |
| Location: | West Columbia (near Columbia), South Carolina, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 33°56'20"N by 81°7'9"W |
| Area Served: | Columbia, South Carolina |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 236 feet (72 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from CAE |
| More Information: | CAE Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SMA / LPAZ |
| Airport Names: |
|
| Location: | Santa Maria, Portugal |
| GPS Coordinates: | 36°58'26"N by 25°10'15"W |
| Area Served: | Vila do Porto |
| Operator/Owner: | Government of Portugal |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 308 feet (94 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from SMA |
| More Information: | SMA Maps & Info |
Facts about Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE):
- One of the earliest units to train at Columbia AAB was the 17th Bombardment Group, which arrived on 9 February 1942.
- Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) has 2 runways.
- Because of Columbia Metropolitan Airport's relatively low elevation of 236 feet, planes can take off or land at Columbia Metropolitan 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 furthest airport from Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,508 miles (18,520 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Passenger service was begun by Delta Air Lines which has served Columbia for over 70 years.
- The closest airport to Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) is Jim Hamilton - L.B. Owens Airport (CUB), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) ENE of CAE.
- Columbia Metropolitan Airport handled 1,027,699 passengers last year.
Facts about Santa Maria Airport (SMA):
- In addition to being known as "Santa Maria Airport", another name for SMA is "Aeroporto de Santa Maria".
- A chartered Boeing 707-300, Independent Air Flight 1851 from Bergamo, Italy in 1989 crashed on approach to Santa Maria Airport, when it struck the Pico Alto mountain.
- The closest airport to Santa Maria Airport (SMA) is João Paulo II Airport (PDL), which is located 60 miles (97 kilometers) NNW of SMA.
- Because of Santa Maria Airport's relatively low elevation of 308 feet, planes can take off or land at Santa Maria 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.
- Santa Maria Airport is an airport located 5 km west northwest of the urbanized area of Vila do Porto on the Portuguese island of Santa Maria, in the autonomous region of the Azores.
- For a while, Air France's supersonic Concordes were routed to Santa Maria on refueling layovers between Paris and Caracas.
- Along with the airports in Lisbon, Porto, Faro, Flores, Horta, Ponta Delgada and Beja, the airport's concessions to provide support to civil aviation was conceded to ANA Aeroportos de Portugal on 18 December 1998, under provisions of decree 404/98.
- Santa Maria Airport handled 93,436 passengers last year.
- The furthest airport from Santa Maria Airport (SMA) is Moruya Airport (MYA), which is nearly antipodal to Santa Maria Airport (meaning Santa Maria Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Moruya Airport), and is located 12,166 miles (19,579 kilometers) away in Moruya, New South Wales, Australia.
- Santa Maria Airport (SMA) currently has only 1 runway.
| Rank | Distance & Direction | Airport Name & IATA Code | Airport Location | Further Actions |
| 1 | 7.44 miles (11.98 km) ENE | Jim Hamilton - L.B. Owens Airport (CUB) | Columbia, South Carolina, United States |     |
| 2 | 18.29 miles (29.44 km) E | McEntire Joint National Guard Base Marine Corps Auxiliary Airfield CongareeCongaree Army Airfield (MMT) | Eastover, South Carolina, United States | |
| 3 | 36.50 miles (58.74 km) SSE | Orangeburg Municipal Airport (OGB) | Orangeburg, South Carolina, United States | |
| 4 | 37.14 miles (59.76 km) E | Shaw Air Force Base (SSC) | Sumter, South Carolina, United States | |
| 5 | 38.14 miles (61.38 km) WSW | Aiken Municipal Airport (AIK) | Aiken, South Carolina, United States | |
| 6 | 39.66 miles (63.83 km) NE | Woodward Field (CDN) | Camden, South Carolina, United States | |
| 7 | 43.61 miles (70.19 km) E | Sumter Airport (SUM) | Sumter, South Carolina, United States | |
| 8 | 49.52 miles (79.69 km) SSW | Barnwell Regional Airport (BNL) | Barnwell, South Carolina, United States | |
| 9 | 62.15 miles (100.02 km) WSW | Daniel Field (DNL) | Augusta, Georgia, United States | |
| 10 | 62.50 miles (100.59 km) SW | Augusta Regional Airport at Bush Field (AGS) | Augusta, Georgia, United States | |
| 11 | 63.22 miles (101.75 km) WNW | Greenwood County Airport (GRD) | Greenwood, South Carolina, United States | |
| 12 | 65.56 miles (105.51 km) ENE | Hartsville Regional Airport (HVS) | Hartsville, South Carolina, United States | |
| 13 | 75.55 miles (121.58 km) SSE | Lowcountry Regional Airport (RBW) | Walterboro, South Carolina, United States | |
| 14 | 81.67 miles (131.44 km) ENE | Florence Regional Airport (FLO) | Florence, South Carolina, United States | |
| 15 | 82.65 miles (133.01 km) NW | Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport (SPA) | Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States | |
| Rank | Distance & Direction | Airport Name & IATA Code | Airport Location | Further Actions |
| 1 | 11,507.99 miles (18,520.27 km) W | Margaret River Airport (MGV) | Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 2 | 11,489.32 miles (18,490.22 km) W | Busselton Regional Airport (BQB) | Busselton, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 3 | 11,471.13 miles (18,460.96 km) W | Bunbury Airport (BUY) | Bunbury, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 4 | 11,463.08 miles (18,448.00 km) W | Rottnest Airport (RTS) | Rottnest Island, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 5 | 11,458.75 miles (18,441.03 km) W | Jurien Bay Airport (JUR) | Jurien Bay, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 6 | 11,450.26 miles (18,427.36 km) W | Manjimup Airport (MJP) | Manjimup, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 7 | 11,444.86 miles (18,418.67 km) W | Jandakot Airport (JAD) | Jandakot, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 8 | 11,439.14 miles (18,409.46 km) WSW | Geraldton Airport (GET) | Geraldton, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 9 | 11,437.64 miles (18,407.05 km) W | Perth Airport (PER) | Perth, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 10 | 11,428.77 miles (18,392.77 km) WSW | Kalbarri Airport (KAX) | Kalbarri, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 11 | 11,397.57 miles (18,342.56 km) WSW | Shark Bay Airport (MJK) | Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 12 | 11,385.19 miles (18,322.65 km) WSW | Mullewa Airport (MXU) | Mullewa, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 13 | 11,377.54 miles (18,310.33 km) WSW | Morawa Airport (MWB) | Morawa, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 14 | 11,360.48 miles (18,282.87 km) W | Katanning Airport (KNI) | Katanning, Western Australia, Australia | |
| 15 | 11,357.61 miles (18,278.25 km) W | Albany Airport (ALH) | Albany, Western Australia, Australia | |
| Rank | Distance & Direction | Airport Name & IATA Code | Airport Location | Further Actions |
| 1 | 60.44 miles (97.26 km) NNW | João Paulo II Airport (PDL) | Ponta Delgada, Azores, Portugal | |
| 2 | 161.94 miles (260.61 km) NW | Lajes Air Base (TER) | Lajes, Azores, Portugal | |
| 3 | 209.34 miles (336.90 km) WNW | Pico Airport (PIX) | Pico Island, Azores, Portugal | |
| 4 | 213.54 miles (343.67 km) NW | Graciosa Airport (GRW) | Graciosa Island, Azores, Portugal | |
| 5 | 221.17 miles (355.94 km) WNW | Horta International Airport (HOR) | Horta, Azores, Portugal | |
| 6 | 366.19 miles (589.32 km) WNW | Flores Airport (FLW) | Flores Island, Azores, Portugal | |
| 7 | 371.97 miles (598.63 km) WNW | Corvo Airport (CVU) | Corvo Island, Azores, Portugal | |
| 8 | 560.01 miles (901.25 km) ESE | Madeira Airport (FNC) | Funchal, Madeira, Portugal | |
| 9 | 566.98 miles (912.46 km) ESE | Porto Santo Airport (PXO) | Porto Santo, Madeira, Portugal | |
| 10 | 719.25 miles (1,157.51 km) SE | La Palma Airport (SPC) | La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain | |
| 11 | 771.87 miles (1,242.20 km) SE | La Gomera Airport (GMZ) | Alajeró / San Sebastián, Canary Islands, Spain | |
| 12 | 778.68 miles (1,253.16 km) SE | Tenerife North Airport (TFN) | Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain | |
| 13 | 793.97 miles (1,277.77 km) SE | Tenerife-South Airport (TFS) | Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain | |
| 14 | 844.99 miles (1,359.87 km) SE | Gran Canaria Airport (LPA) | Las Palmas, Canary Islands, Spain | |
| 15 | 869.00 miles (1,398.51 km) SE | Lanzarote Airport (ACE) | Arrecife, Canary Islands, Spain | |
| Rank | Distance & Direction | Airport Name & IATA Code | Airport Location | Further Actions |
| 1 | 12,166.03 miles (19,579.28 km) ESE | Moruya Airport (MYA) | Moruya, New South Wales, Australia | |
| 2 | 12,164.68 miles (19,577.11 km) E | Merimbula Airport (MIM) | Merimbula, New South Wales, Australia | |
| 3 | 12,155.61 miles (19,562.50 km) SE | Illawarra Regional Airport (WOL) | Shellharbour, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia | |
| 4 | 12,143.59 miles (19,543.17 km) SE | Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD) | Mascot (near Sydney), Australia | |
| 5 | 12,135.02 miles (19,529.37 km) SE | Bankstown Airport (BWU) | Bankstown (near Sydney), New South Wales, Australia | |
| 6 | 12,128.04 miles (19,518.13 km) SE | Camden Aerodrome (CDU) | Camden, New South Wales, Australia | |
| 7 | 12,113.81 miles (19,495.24 km) ESE | Goulburn Airport (GUL) | Goulburn, New South Wales, Australia | |
| 8 | 12,112.40 miles (19,492.97 km) SE | Belmont Airport (BEO) | Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia | |
| 9 | 12,102.07 miles (19,476.35 km) ESE | Canberra Airport (CBR) | Canberra, Australia | |
| 10 | 12,101.93 miles (19,476.12 km) SSE | Newcastle Airport (NTL) | Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia | |
| 11 | 12,086.58 miles (19,451.41 km) SE | Cessnock Airport (CES) | Cessnock, New South Wales, Australia | |
| 12 | 12,086.22 miles (19,450.83 km) SSE | Maitland Airport (MTL) | Maitland, New South Wales, Australia | |
| 13 | 12,054.69 miles (19,400.10 km) SE | Bathurst Airport (BHS) | Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia | |
| 14 | 12,047.90 miles (19,389.17 km) E | Corryong Airport (CYG) | Corryong, Victoria, Australia | |
| 15 | 12,038.04 miles (19,373.30 km) SSE | Port Macquarie Airport (PQQ) | Port Macquarie, New South Wales, Australia | |