Nonstop flight route between Graciosa Island, Azores, Portugal and Big Spring, Texas, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from GRW to BGS:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- GRW Airport Information
- BGS Airport Information
- Facts about GRW
- Facts about BGS
- Map of Nearest Airports to GRW
- List of Nearest Airports to GRW
- Map of Furthest Airports from GRW
- List of Furthest Airports from GRW
- Map of Nearest Airports to BGS
- List of Nearest Airports to BGS
- Map of Furthest Airports from BGS
- List of Furthest Airports from BGS
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Graciosa Airport (GRW), Graciosa Island, Azores, Portugal and Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS), Big Spring, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,041 miles (or 6,503 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 Graciosa Airport and Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield, 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 Graciosa Airport and Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GRW / LPGR |
Airport Name: | Graciosa Airport |
Location: | Graciosa Island, Azores, Portugal |
GPS Coordinates: | 39°5'33"N by 28°1'42"W |
Operator/Owner: | ANA – Aeroportos de Portugal, SA |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 85 feet (26 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from GRW |
More Information: | GRW Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | BGS / |
Airport Name: | Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield |
Location: | Big Spring, Texas, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 32°13'5"N by 101°31'17"W |
View all routes: | Routes from BGS |
More Information: | BGS Maps & Info |
Facts about Graciosa Airport (GRW):
- Because of Graciosa Airport's relatively low elevation of 85 feet, planes can take off or land at Graciosa 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.
- Graciosa Airport (GRW) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Graciosa Airport (GRW) is Pico Airport (PIX), which is located 43 miles (70 kilometers) SSW of GRW.
- The furthest airport from Graciosa Airport (GRW) is Merimbula Airport (MIM), which is nearly antipodal to Graciosa Airport (meaning Graciosa Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Merimbula Airport), and is located 12,248 miles (19,712 kilometers) away in Merimbula, New South Wales, Australia.
Facts about Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS):
- The closest airport to Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Midland Airpark (MDD), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) WSW of BGS.
- The Air Force established a standard wing structure—a dual deputy concept—in 1963.
- In August 1972, ATC established a pilot instructor training course for Vietnamese Air Force instructors at Webb AFB, Texas.
- 3560th Pilot Training Wing
- Activated on 26 June 1942, the mission of Big Spring AAF was to train aviation cadets in high altitude precision bombing as bombardiers.
- The furthest airport from Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,166 miles (17,969 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- The facility was brought back into service as a primary training installation because of the Korean War and the need for additional pilots.