Nonstop flight route between Chicago, Illinois, United States and Santa Barbara, California, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MDW to SBA:
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- About this route
- MDW Airport Information
- SBA Airport Information
- Facts about MDW
- Facts about SBA
- Map of Nearest Airports to MDW
- List of Nearest Airports to MDW
- Map of Furthest Airports from MDW
- List of Furthest Airports from MDW
- Map of Nearest Airports to SBA
- List of Nearest Airports to SBA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SBA
- List of Furthest Airports from SBA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW), Chicago, Illinois, United States and Santa Barbara Airport (SBA), Santa Barbara, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,805 miles (or 2,905 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 relatively short distance between Chicago Midway International Airport and Santa Barbara Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | MDW / KMDW |
| Airport Name: | Chicago Midway International Airport |
| Location: | Chicago, Illinois, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 41°47'9"N by 87°45'8"W |
| Area Served: | Chicago, Illinois, US |
| Operator/Owner: | City of Chicago |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 620 feet (189 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 5 |
| View all routes: | Routes from MDW |
| More Information: | MDW Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SBA / KSBA |
| Airport Name: | Santa Barbara Airport |
| Location: | Santa Barbara, California, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 34°25'33"N by 119°50'25"W |
| Area Served: | Santa Barbara, California |
| Operator/Owner: | City of Santa Barbara |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 10 feet (3 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 3 |
| View all routes: | Routes from SBA |
| More Information: | SBA Maps & Info |
Facts about Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW):
- Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) has 5 runways.
- The carrier transporting the most passengers from Chicago Midway Airport is Southwest Airlines.
- Because of Chicago Midway International Airport's relatively low elevation of 620 feet, planes can take off or land at Chicago Midway 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.
- Simultaneous to Midway's expansion, ATA Airlines began rapid expansion at Midway in the early 2000s, and was the airport's dominant carrier prior to 2004, using 14 of the 17 gates in Concourse A.
- The furthest airport from Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,083 miles (17,836 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- By 1967 reconstruction began at the airport, adding three new concourses with 28 gates and three ticket counters, and in 1968 the city invested $10 million in renovation funds.
- The closest airport to Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) is Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD), which is located only 15 miles (25 kilometers) NNW of MDW.
- In 2002 Midway welcomed the return of international service after a 40-year absence with the opening of the new Federal Inspection Service facility in Concourse A.
- In September 2013, Mayor Rahm Emanuel terminated negotiations to privatize the airport, noting that the process was no longer competitive after one of the two finalists had backed out.
Facts about Santa Barbara Airport (SBA):
- Santa Barbara Airport (SBA) has 3 runways.
- American Airlines started nonstop McDonnell Douglas MD-80s to Dallas Fort-Worth International in 1984, sometimes on a triangle routing of DFW-Burbank-SBA-DFW or DFW-Bakersfield-SBA-DFW.
- Because of Santa Barbara Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Santa Barbara 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 furthest airport from Santa Barbara Airport (SBA) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,487 miles (18,486 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
- Besides American and United, other airlines operating jets from SBA included Pacific Air Lines with Boeing 727-100s to Los Angeles, San Francisco and Monterey, Continental Airlines with nonstop Boeing 737-300s to Denver, Air West with Boeing 727-100s as well as McDonnell Douglas DC-9-10s and DC-9-30s to Los Angeles, San Francisco and other cities, Allegiant Air with McDonnell Douglas MD-80s to Las Vegas, Pacific Express with British Aircraft Corporation BAC One-Elevens to Los Angeles, San Francisco and Bakersfield, Air Wisconsin with British Aerospace BAe 146-200 and BAe 146-300s to Denver, and ExpressJet flying Embraer ERJ-145s nonstop to Sacramento and San Diego.
- As airplane manufacturing grew in the late 1930s that airstrip developed into an airfield.
- In addition to regularly scheduled flights offered by other airlines, Surf Air operates service to Burbank and San Carlos in California using seven seat Pilatus PC-12 turboprops via a membership only, pay-as-you-fly program.
- The closest airport to Santa Barbara Airport (SBA) is Santa Ynez Airport (SQA), which is located only 18 miles (29 kilometers) NW of SBA.
