Nonstop flight route between Medan, Indonesia and Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, Kingdom of the Netherlands:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from MES to SXM:
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- About this route
- MES Airport Information
- SXM Airport Information
- Facts about MES
- Facts about SXM
- Map of Nearest Airports to MES
- List of Nearest Airports to MES
- Map of Furthest Airports from MES
- List of Furthest Airports from MES
- Map of Nearest Airports to SXM
- List of Nearest Airports to SXM
- Map of Furthest Airports from SXM
- List of Furthest Airports from SXM
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Polonia International Airport (MES), Medan, Indonesia and Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM), Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, Kingdom of the Netherlands would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,496 miles (or 16,892 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 Polonia International Airport and Princess Juliana 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 Polonia International Airport and Princess Juliana 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: | MES / WIMM |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Medan, Indonesia |
| GPS Coordinates: | 3°33'29"N by 98°40'18"E |
| Area Served: | Medan |
| Operator/Owner: | Government of Indonesia |
| Airport Type: | Military |
| Elevation: | 114 feet (35 meters) |
| View all routes: | Routes from MES |
| More Information: | MES Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SXM / TNCM |
| Airport Name: | Princess Juliana International Airport |
| Location: | Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, Kingdom of the Netherlands |
| GPS Coordinates: | 18°2'26"N by 63°6'33"W |
| Operator/Owner: | Princess Juliana Int'l Airport Holding Company N.V. |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 14 feet (4 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from SXM |
| More Information: | SXM Maps & Info |
Facts about Polonia International Airport (MES):
- The furthest airport from Polonia International Airport (MES) is Cap. FAP Pedro Canga Rodríguez Airport (TBP), which is nearly antipodal to Polonia International Airport (meaning Polonia International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cap. FAP Pedro Canga Rodríguez Airport), and is located 12,371 miles (19,910 kilometers) away in Tumbes, Peru.
- In addition to being known as "Polonia International Airport", other names for MES include "Bandar Udara Internasional Polonia" and "WIMK".
- By the time the news had arrived, it was too late to prepare a proper landing strip at Polonia.
- The closest airport to Polonia International Airport (MES) is Kualanamu International Airport (KNO), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) ENE of MES.
- In 1975, according to a joint decree issued by the Department of Defence and Security, Department of Transportation, and Department of Finance, the airport was jointly managed between the Indonesian Air Force and the Civil Aviation.
- Because of Polonia International Airport's relatively low elevation of 114 feet, planes can take off or land at Polonia 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 airport suffered from overcrowding, serving 7,5 million passengers annually in facilities designed to handle only 900,000 passengers.
Facts about Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM):
- Phase I was a short-term program in order to upgrade existing facilities and improve the level of service at various points.
- The closest airport to Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) is L'Espérance Airport Grand Case Airport (CCE), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) NE of SXM.
- Despite the reputed difficulties in approach, there have been no records of major incidents at the airport, although ALM Flight 980 crashed 30 miles from St.
- To accommodate the growing international and local traffic of private aircraft, PJIA has a Fixed Base Operator building, offering office space and private lounges with dedicated customs.
- Because of Princess Juliana International Airport's relatively low elevation of 14 feet, planes can take off or land at Princess Juliana 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.
- Because the approach to Runway 10 is over water, pilots can become disoriented regarding their perceived altitude when operating under visual flight rules.
- The furthest airport from Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) is Karratha Airport (KTA), which is nearly antipodal to Princess Juliana International Airport (meaning Princess Juliana International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Karratha Airport), and is located 12,252 miles (19,718 kilometers) away in Karratha / Dampier, Western Australia, Australia.
- Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) currently has only 1 runway.
