Nonstop flight route between Leeds / Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom and Santa Maria, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Leeds Bradford International Airport (LBA), Leeds / Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom and Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX), Santa Maria, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,303 miles (or 8,535 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 Leeds Bradford International Airport and Santa Maria Public 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 Leeds Bradford International Airport and Santa Maria Public 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 Leeds Bradford International Airport (LBA):

• 609 Squadron formation on 10 February 1936 until 27 August 1939 when they moved to Catterick.
• Leeds Bradford International Airport is located at Yeadon, in the City of Leeds Metropolitan District in West Yorkshire, England, 6 nautical miles northwest of Leeds city centre itself.
• In 2012, Monarch announced it would open an operation base at the airport in 2013.
• The closest airport to Leeds Bradford International Airport (LBA) is Sheffield City Heliport (SZD), which is located 34 miles (55 kilometers) SSE of LBA.
• Leeds Bradford International Airport handled 3,318,358 passengers last year.
• Leeds Bradford International Airport (LBA) currently has only 1 runway.
• In November 2008 the early stages of the airport masterplan were clarified, with in-depth detailed plans for the expansion of the airport terminal being published, at an estimated cost of £28 million.
• Because of Leeds Bradford International Airport's relatively low elevation of 681 feet, planes can take off or land at Leeds Bradford 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.
• In August 1986, an Air France Concorde charter flight from Paris landed at Leeds Bradford for the first time, and an estimated 60,000 people were there to see it.
• The furthest airport from Leeds Bradford International Airport (LBA) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,780 miles (18,959 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.

Facts about Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX):

• A runway extension opened on May 3, 2012, from 6,304 ft.
• The airport was built by the United States Army during World War II, known as Santa Maria Army Air Field.
• The furthest airport from Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,466 miles (18,453 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• The closest airport to Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) is Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) SSW of SMX.
• During its use by the military Santa Maria AAF also controlled Estrella Army Airfield, near Paso Robles as an auxiliary airfield to support the pilot training activity.
• Because of Santa Maria Public Airport's relatively low elevation of 261 feet, planes can take off or land at Santa Maria Public 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.
• In addition to being known as "Santa Maria Public Airport", another name for SMX is "Capt. G. Allan Hancock FieldSanta Maria Army Airfield".
• Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) has 2 runways.
• Besides the current Allegiant jet service, SkyWest Airlines operating as United Express via a code sharing agreement with United Airlines flies Embraer EMB-120 Brasilia turboprops and sometimes Bombardier CRJ-200 Regional Jet nonstop to Los Angeles that served the airport for many years.