Nonstop flight route between Charleston, South Carolina, United States and Santa Maria, Portugal:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Charleston International Airport (CHS), Charleston, South Carolina, United States and Santa Maria Airport (SMA), Santa Maria, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,078 miles (or 4,953 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 Charleston International 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 Charleston International 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:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Charleston International Airport (CHS):

• Charleston International Airport is located near the interchange of Interstate 26 and Interstate 526 and is accessible from both interstates using International Boulevard and Montague Avenue exits.
• Charleston International Airport handled 2,913,265 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Charleston International Airport (CHS) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,561 miles (18,606 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• CARTA, the regional mass transit system, serves the airport with three routes that operate seven days a week from 6:00 a.m.
• Because of Charleston International Airport's relatively low elevation of 46 feet, planes can take off or land at Charleston 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.
• The closest airport to Charleston International Airport (CHS) is Lowcountry Regional Airport (RBW), which is located 35 miles (56 kilometers) W of CHS.
• In addition to being known as "Charleston International Airport", another name for CHS is "Charleston Field".
• Charleston International Airport (CHS) has 2 runways.
• Throughout its history, all four domestic legacy carriers and their predecessor companies have served Charleston International Airport.
• General aviation services are located on the east side of the airport and are operated by the Charleston County Aviation Authority.
• The current airline terminal was built in 1987 and was designed by Howard Needles Tammen & Bergendoff, Davis & Floyd, Inc., and Lucas & Stubbs.
• In 1928, the Charleston Airport Corporation was founded and purchased 700 acres of land previously belonging to a mining company.
• During the Korean War, the airfield was reactivated for military use and in 1952, the City of Charleston and the United States Air Force reached an agreement on control of the base and the runways—an arrangement that has been renegotiated over time and that continues to this day.

Facts about Santa Maria Airport (SMA):

• 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 handled 93,436 passengers last year.
• Santa Maria Airport (SMA) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• For a while, Air France's supersonic Concordes were routed to Santa Maria on refueling layovers between Paris and Caracas.
• In addition to being known as "Santa Maria Airport", another name for SMA is "Aeroporto de Santa Maria".
• The closest airport to Santa Maria Airport (SMA) is João Paulo II Airport (PDL), which is located 60 miles (97 kilometers) NNW of SMA.
• The forerunner of SATA Air Açores initiated services concurrently to São Miguel and Terceira from Santa Maria Airport on 5 August 1947, using a plane christened "Açor".