Nonstop flight route between London, England, United Kingdom and San Jose, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between London Heathrow Airport (LHR), London, England, United Kingdom and Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC), San Jose, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,355 miles (or 8,618 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 Norman Y. Mineta San Jose 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 Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International 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 London Heathrow Airport (LHR):

• In 2005, a substantial redesign and redevelopment of the terminal saw the opening of the new Eastern Extension, doubling the size of the departure lounge and creating additional seating as well as retail space.
• 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 closest airport to London Heathrow Airport (LHR) is RAF Northolt (NHT), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) NNE of LHR.
• 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.
• Heathrow Airport started in 1929 as a small airfield on land south-east of the hamlet of Heathrow from which the airport takes its name.
• London Heathrow Airport (LHR) has 2 runways.
• Until 2008, air traffic between Heathrow and the United States was strictly governed by the countries' bilateral Bermuda II treaty.

Facts about Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC):

• In November 2005 a scaled-back plan was approved and announced.
• Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport handled 8,357,384 passengers last year.
• In November 2001 the airport was renamed after Norman Yoshio Mineta, a native of San Jose, its former mayor and congressman, former United States Secretary of Commerce and former United States Secretary of Transportation.
• Because of Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport's relatively low elevation of 62 feet, planes can take off or land at Norman Y. Mineta San Jose 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.
• The closest airport to Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC) is Reid-Hillview Airport of Santa Clara County (RHV), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) ESE of SJC.
• In 2009, the gates at the airport were renumbered in preparation for the addition of Terminal B.
• Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC) has 3 runways.
• On February 4, 2013, Virgin America announced it will begin service from San Jose to Los Angeles International Airport on May 1, 2013, with four daily nonstop flights each way.
• The furthest airport from Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,363 miles (18,287 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• In October 2005, Hawaiian Airlines began daily nonstops to Honolulu.
• San Jose's first airline flights were Southwest Airways DC-3s on the multistop run between San Francisco and Los Angeles, starting in 1948.