Nonstop flight route between Lafayette, Louisiana, United States and East London, South Africa:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from LFT to ELS:
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- About this route
- LFT Airport Information
- ELS Airport Information
- Facts about LFT
- Facts about ELS
- Map of Nearest Airports to LFT
- List of Nearest Airports to LFT
- Map of Furthest Airports from LFT
- List of Furthest Airports from LFT
- Map of Nearest Airports to ELS
- List of Nearest Airports to ELS
- Map of Furthest Airports from ELS
- List of Furthest Airports from ELS
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Lafayette Regional Airport (LFT), Lafayette, Louisiana, United States and East London Airport (ELS), East London, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,939 miles (or 14,386 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 Lafayette Regional Airport and East London 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 Lafayette Regional Airport and East London Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | LFT / KLFT |
Airport Name: | Lafayette Regional Airport |
Location: | Lafayette, Louisiana, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 30°12'19"N by 91°59'14"W |
Area Served: | Lafayette, Louisiana |
Operator/Owner: | City & Parish of Lafayette |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 42 feet (13 meters) |
# of Runways: | 3 |
View all routes: | Routes from LFT |
More Information: | LFT Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | ELS / FAEL |
Airport Name: | East London Airport |
Location: | East London, South Africa |
GPS Coordinates: | 33°2'5"S by 27°49'17"E |
Area Served: | East London, Eastern Cape, South Africa |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 436 feet (133 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from ELS |
More Information: | ELS Maps & Info |
Facts about Lafayette Regional Airport (LFT):
- The closest airport to Lafayette Regional Airport (LFT) is Acadiana Regional Airport (ARA), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) SSE of LFT.
- The furthest airport from Lafayette Regional Airport (LFT) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,070 miles (17,815 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
- Because of Lafayette Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 42 feet, planes can take off or land at Lafayette Regional 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.
- Lafayette Regional Airport (LFT) has 3 runways.
- The last major airline jet service for the airport was operated by Continental Airlines with Boeing 737-300 and Boeing 737-500 jetliners nonstop to Houston.
- The airport opened as Lafayette Municipal Airport on 29 November 1930.
Facts about East London Airport (ELS):
- In 1944 a new airport was built at Collondale, about 2 km west of the present terminal building.
- The airport had an inauspicious beginning in 1927, when Lieut Colonel Alistair Miller asked the East London town council to help establish a municipal aerodrome at Woodbrook, west of the city.
- The closest airport to East London Airport (ELS) is Port Alfred Airport (AFD), which is located 65 miles (105 kilometers) WSW of ELS.
- East London Airport (ELS) has 2 runways.
- Because of East London Airport's relatively low elevation of 436 feet, planes can take off or land at East London 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 airport was renamed in 1994.
- In 1965 the airport was again moved, this time to its present site, 9 km west of the city centre.
- The furthest airport from East London Airport (ELS) is Kalaupapa Airport (LUP), which is located 11,569 miles (18,618 kilometers) away in Kalaupapa, Hawaii, United States.