Nonstop flight route between Friday Harbor, Washington, United States and Lajes, Azores, Portugal:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Friday Harbor Seaplane Base (FBS), Friday Harbor, Washington, United States and Lajes Air Base (TER), Lajes, Azores, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,520 miles (or 7,275 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 Friday Harbor Seaplane Base 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 Friday Harbor Seaplane Base 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 Friday Harbor Seaplane Base (FBS):

• The closest airport to Friday Harbor Seaplane Base (FBS) is Friday Harbor Airport (FRD), which is located only 1 miles (2 kilometers) SSW of FBS.
• The furthest airport from Friday Harbor Seaplane Base (FBS) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,724 miles (17,259 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Friday Harbor Seaplane Base (FBS) has 2 runways.
• Because of Friday Harbor Seaplane Base's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Friday Harbor Seaplane 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 addition to being known as "Friday Harbor Seaplane Base", another name for FBS is "W33".

Facts about Lajes Air Base (TER):

• Lajes provides support to 15,000 aircraft, including fighters from the US and 20 other allied nations each.
• In 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization military alliance was established.
• 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.
• Lajes Field also played a crucial role in Cold War politics.
• The closest airport to Lajes Air Base (TER) is Graciosa Airport (GRW), which is located 55 miles (89 kilometers) WNW of TER.
• 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 the summer of 1984, Lajes undertook a new mission known as "SILK PURSE." Boeing EC-135s began operating out of Lajes Field as an airborne command post for the U.S.
• Lajes Air Base (TER) currently has only 1 runway.