Nonstop flight route between Funchal, Madeira, Portugal and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Madeira Airport (FNC), Funchal, Madeira, Portugal and United States Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NBW), Guantanamo Bay, Cuba would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,677 miles (or 5,917 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 Madeira Airport and United States Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, 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 Madeira Airport and United States Naval Station Guantanamo Bay. 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 Madeira Airport (FNC):

• Funchal Airport is 13.2 km east-northeast of the regional capital Funchal.
• Madeira Airport handled 2,311,380 passengers last year.
• Madeira Airport, formerly known as Santa Catarina Airport and informally known as Funchal Airport, is an international airport in the civil parish of Santa Catarina, municipality of Santa Cruz, in the Portuguese archipelago of the Madeira.
• Because of Madeira Airport's relatively low elevation of 190 feet, planes can take off or land at Madeira 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 Madeira Airport (FNC) is Lord Howe Island Airport (LDH), which is nearly antipodal to Madeira Airport (meaning Madeira Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Lord Howe Island Airport), and is located 12,181 miles (19,604 kilometers) away in Lord Howe Island, New South Wales, Australia.
• In 1972, the popularity of visiting the island of Madeira increased, so the runway had to be extended to allow modern and larger aircraft to land.
• Madeira Airport (FNC) currently has only 1 runway.
• The airport was once infamous for its short runway which, surrounded by high mountains and the ocean, made it a tricky landing for even the most experienced of pilots.
• The closest airport to Madeira Airport (FNC) is Porto Santo Airport (PXO), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) NE of FNC.
• In addition to being known as "Madeira Airport", another name for FNC is "Aeroporto da Madeira".

Facts about United States Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NBW):

• Until the 1953–59 revolution, thousands of Cubans commuted daily from outside the base to jobs within.
• The Guantanamo Bay Coaling and Naval Base employs over 9,500 U.S.
• The closest airport to United States Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NBW) is Mariana Grajales Airport (GAO), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) N of NBW.
• Since 1939, the base's water had been supplied by pipelines that drew water from the Yateras River about 4.5 miles northeast of the base.
• "Cactus Curtain" is a term describing the line separating the naval base from Cuban-controlled territory.
• The furthest airport from United States Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NBW) is RAAF Learmonth (LEA), which is located 11,820 miles (19,022 kilometers) away in Exmouth, Western Australia, Australia.
• During the war the base was set up to use a non-descript number for postal operations.
• Leeward Point of the Naval Station is the site of the active airfield.
• The Migrant Operations Center on Guantanamo typically keeps fewer than 30 people interdicted at sea in the Caribbean region.