Nonstop flight route between Louisville, Kentucky, United States and Lajes, Azores, Portugal:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bowman Field (LOU), Louisville, Kentucky, United States and Lajes Air Base (TER), Lajes, Azores, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,111 miles (or 5,006 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 Bowman Field and Lajes Air Base, 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 Bowman Field and Lajes Air Base. 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 Bowman Field (LOU):

• The closest airport to Bowman Field (LOU) is Louisville International Airport (SDF), which is located only 5 miles (9 kilometers) SW of LOU.
• The dominant landmark of Bowman Field is its terminal, known as the Administration Building, styled in aerodynamic Moderne.
• Bowman Field was used in the James Bond film Goldfinger as the base for Pussy Galore's Flying Circus.
• Bowman Field is operated by the Louisville Regional Airport Authority, which also operates Louisville International Airport.
• The furthest airport from Bowman Field (LOU) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,243 miles (18,093 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Bowman Field is Kentucky's first commercial airport and is the oldest continually operating commercial airfield in North America.
• Bowman Field is a public airport five miles southeast of downtown Louisville, in Jefferson County, Kentucky.
• Because of Bowman Field's relatively low elevation of 546 feet, planes can take off or land at Bowman Field 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 first business ventures began with the aerial photography business in 1921, and the 465th Pursuit Squadron began operations at Bowman Field in 1922.
• Bowman Field (LOU) has 2 runways.

Facts about Lajes Air Base (TER):

• In addition to being known as "Lajes Air Base", other names for TER include "Base Aérea das Lajes", "Base Aérea Nº 4" and "Aeroporto das Lajes".
• Because of Lajes Air Base's relatively low elevation of 180 feet, planes can take off or land at Lajes Air Base 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.
• Today, Lajes continues to support transiting aircraft.
• The civilian terminal also plays an important role in support of passenger and cargo airliners, executive, corporate and private jets flying to the island or beyond as the central location in the Azores group of islands makes it an ideal spot for refuelling or stopover.
• Lajes Air Base (TER) currently has only 1 runway.
• The Portuguese Air Force continues to operate one SAR squadron Esq.
• In 2009 Lajes provided rescue support of shipping lanes across the Atlantic, a safe haven for medical or mechanical emergency situations in aircraft crossing the Atlantic, and support for the USAF's continuing campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan.
• Lajes Field was one of the two stopover and refueling bases for the first transatlantic crossing of non-rigid airships in 1944.
• The furthest airport from Lajes Air Base (TER) is Merimbula Airport (MIM), which is nearly antipodal to Lajes Air Base (meaning Lajes Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Merimbula Airport), and is located 12,229 miles (19,680 kilometers) away in Merimbula, New South Wales, Australia.
• The closest airport to Lajes Air Base (TER) is Graciosa Airport (GRW), which is located 55 miles (89 kilometers) WNW of TER.
• Another important Cold War operation at Lajes was the U.S.