Nonstop flight route between Los Alamos, New Mexico, United States and Buka Island, Papua New Guinea:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Los Alamos Airport (LAM), Los Alamos, New Mexico, United States and Buka Island Airport (BUA), Buka Island, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,944 miles (or 11,176 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 Los Alamos Airport and Buka Island 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 Los Alamos Airport and Buka Island 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 Los Alamos Airport (LAM):

• The closest airport to Los Alamos Airport (LAM) is Ohkay Owingeh Airport (ESO), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) NE of LAM.
• In addition to being known as "Los Alamos Airport", another name for LAM is "Los Alamos County Airport".
• Los Alamos Airport (LAM) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of the restricted airspace immediately to the south of the runway, and the noise-sensitive residential area just west of the runway, Los Alamos Airport employs a non-standard traffic pattern.
• Because of Los Alamos Airport's high elevation of 7,171 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at LAM. Combined with a high temperature, this could make LAM a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The furthest airport from Los Alamos Airport (LAM) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,157 miles (17,956 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.

Facts about Buka Island Airport (BUA):

• The origins of the airfield begin in 1941 when Australian troops built gun pits around a primitive airstrip in December 1941.
• Buka Island Airport (BUA) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Buka Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Buka Island 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 Buka Island Airport (BUA) is São Filipe Airport (SFL), which is located 11,781 miles (18,959 kilometers) away in Fogo, Cape Verde.
• There is one navigational aid, the Buka NDB situated on nearby Sohano Island.
• The closest airport to Buka Island Airport (BUA) is Nissan Island Airport (IIS), which is located 71 miles (114 kilometers) NNW of BUA.
• Today the airport is the primary air portal into Bougainville, and even 60 years after the war, wreckage from the military use of the airfield by the Japanese and Americans is easily found in the area.