Nonstop flight route between Manhattan, Kansas, United States and Lajes, Azores, Portugal:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Manhattan Regional Airport (MHK), Manhattan, Kansas, United States and Lajes Air Base (TER), Lajes, Azores, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,640 miles (or 5,858 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 Manhattan Regional Airport 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 Manhattan Regional Airport 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 Manhattan Regional Airport (MHK):

• The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2013–2017 categorized it as a primary commercial service airport.
• From the mid-1980s through the early 1990s, before its sale to Mesa Air Group in 1991, Wichita-based Air Midwest flew Manhattan to Salina and Kansas City on 19-passenger Fairchild Metroliner IIIs.
• The closest airport to Manhattan Regional Airport (MHK) is Marshall Army AirfieldMarshall Air Force Base (FRI), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) SW of MHK.
• Manhattan Regional Airport (MHK) has 2 runways.
• The first scheduled commercial airline service into Manhattan was Continental Airlines, which began DC-3 flights to Wichita in April 1953.
• The furthest airport from Manhattan Regional Airport (MHK) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,646 miles (17,133 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The FBO facility, next to the passenger terminal, is occupied by Kansas Air Center, which has been at Manhattan Airport since May 1989.

Facts about Lajes Air Base (TER):

• In 1961, the Portuguese Air Force EICAP was transferred to Lajes, operating Douglas C-47, Douglas C-54 and later CASA C-212 Aviocar.
• Recently, in August 2010, Portuguese news agencies advised for the termination of the F-22 Raptor plan to use Lajes as a platform for DACT training over the Atlantic Ocean.
• 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.
• The closest airport to Lajes Air Base (TER) is Graciosa Airport (GRW), which is located 55 miles (89 kilometers) WNW of 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".
• 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.
• During World War II, the designation of the airfield was changed to Air Base No.4 and the Portuguese government expanded the runway, sending troops and equipment to Terceira, including Gloster Gladiator fighters.
• 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.
• Lajes Air Base (TER) currently has only 1 runway.
• The origin of the Lajes Field dates back to 1928, when Portuguese Army Lieutenant colonel Eduardo Gomes da Silva wrote a report on the possible construction of an airfield in the plainland of Lajes, for that branch's aviation service.