Nonstop flight route between London, England, United Kingdom and San Diego, California, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from LHR to SAN:
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- About this route
- LHR Airport Information
- SAN Airport Information
- Facts about LHR
- Facts about SAN
- Map of Nearest Airports to LHR
- List of Nearest Airports to LHR
- Map of Furthest Airports from LHR
- List of Furthest Airports from LHR
- Map of Nearest Airports to SAN
- List of Nearest Airports to SAN
- Map of Furthest Airports from SAN
- List of Furthest Airports from SAN
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between London Heathrow Airport (LHR), London, England, United Kingdom and San Diego International Airport (SAN), San Diego, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,472 miles (or 8,806 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 London Heathrow Airport and San Diego International 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 London Heathrow Airport and San Diego International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | LHR / EGLL |
| Airport Name: | London Heathrow Airport |
| Location: | London, England, United Kingdom |
| GPS Coordinates: | 51°28'38"N by 0°27'41"W |
| Area Served: | London, United Kingdom |
| Operator/Owner: | Heathrow Airport Holdings |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 83 feet (25 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from LHR |
| More Information: | LHR Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SAN / KSAN |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | San Diego, California, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 32°44'0"N by 117°11'22"W |
| Area Served: | Greater San Diego |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 17 feet (5 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from SAN |
| More Information: | SAN Maps & Info |
Facts about London Heathrow Airport (LHR):
- The furthest airport from London Heathrow Airport (LHR) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,875 miles (19,112 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- The airport is owned and operated by Heathrow Airport Holdings, which also owns and operates three other UK airports, and is itself owned by FGP TopCo Limited, an international consortium led by the Spanish Ferrovial Group that includes Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and Government of Singapore Investment Corporation.
- Night-time flights at Heathrow are subject to restrictions.
- London Heathrow Airport (LHR) has 2 runways.
- With only two runways, operating at over 98% of their capacity, Heathrow has little room for more flights, although the increasing use of larger aircraft such as the Airbus A380 will allow some increase in passenger numbers.
- Heathrow airport has its own resident press corps, consisting of six photographers and one TV crew, serving all the major newspapers and television stations around the world.
- The closest airport to London Heathrow Airport (LHR) is RAF Northolt (NHT), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) NNE of LHR.
- Policing of the airport is the responsibility of the aviation security unit of the Metropolitan Police, although the army, including armoured vehicles of the Household Cavalry, has occasionally been deployed at the airport during periods of heightened security.
- As the airport is west of London and as its runways run east–west, an airliner's landing approach is usually directly over the conurbation of London when the wind is from the west.
- Because of London Heathrow Airport's relatively low elevation of 83 feet, planes can take off or land at London Heathrow 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.
Facts about San Diego International Airport (SAN):
- The closest airport to San Diego International Airport (SAN) is NAS North Island (NZY), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of SAN.
- In addition to being known as "San Diego International Airport", another name for SAN is "Lindbergh Field".
- The airport has domestic flights, as well as international flights to Canada, the United Kingdom, Mexico, and Japan.
- SAN is in a populated area.
- San Diego International Airport (SAN) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from San Diego International Airport (SAN) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,540 miles (18,571 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- Lindbergh Field does not have standard 1,000 ft runway safety areas at the end of each runway.
- Because of San Diego International Airport's relatively low elevation of 17 feet, planes can take off or land at San Diego 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.
- Inspired by Lindbergh's flight and excited to have made his plane, the city of San Diego passed a bond issue in 1928 for the construction of a two-runway municipal airport.
- The Army Air Corps took over the field in 1942, improving it to handle the heavy bombers being manufactured in the region.
- In February 2008, San Diego International Airport was one of the first major airports in the U.S.
