Nonstop flight route between Watson Island, Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States and Lajes, Azores, Portugal:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Miami Seaplane Base (MPB), Watson Island, Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States and Lajes Air Base (TER), Lajes, Azores, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,182 miles (or 5,120 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 Miami Seaplane Base 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 Miami Seaplane Base 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 Miami Seaplane Base (MPB):

• Because of Miami Seaplane Base's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Miami Seaplane 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.
• The furthest airport from Miami Seaplane Base (MPB) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,582 miles (18,640 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Miami Seaplane Base (MPB) is Miami International Airport (MIA), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) W of MPB.
• Miami Seaplane Base (MPB) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Miami Seaplane Base", another name for MPB is "X44".

Facts about Lajes Air Base (TER):

• During the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Lajes Field also supported U.S.
• 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.
• Lajes Air Base (TER) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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 United States and the United Kingdom transferred control of Lajes to Portugal in 1946.
• 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 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.
• Lajes supported the large airlift during the Gulf War.