Nonstop flight route between Norfolk, Virginia, United States and Santa Maria, Portugal:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from NGU to SMA:
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- About this route
- NGU Airport Information
- SMA Airport Information
- Facts about NGU
- Facts about SMA
- Map of Nearest Airports to NGU
- List of Nearest Airports to NGU
- Map of Furthest Airports from NGU
- List of Furthest Airports from NGU
- Map of Nearest Airports to SMA
- List of Nearest Airports to SMA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SMA
- List of Furthest Airports from SMA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Naval Station Norfolk (NGU), Norfolk, Virginia, United States and Santa Maria Airport (SMA), Santa Maria, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,788 miles (or 4,487 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 Naval Station Norfolk and Santa Maria 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 Naval Station Norfolk and Santa Maria Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | NGU / KNGU |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Norfolk, Virginia, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 36°56'42"N by 76°18'47"W |
Operator/Owner: | United States Navy |
Airport Type: | Military: Naval Station |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from NGU |
More Information: | NGU Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SMA / LPAZ |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Santa Maria, Portugal |
GPS Coordinates: | 36°58'26"N by 25°10'15"W |
Area Served: | Vila do Porto |
Operator/Owner: | Government of Portugal |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 308 feet (94 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SMA |
More Information: | SMA Maps & Info |
Facts about Naval Station Norfolk (NGU):
- A new command, Naval Air Center, had been formed October 12, 1942 under Captain J.M.
- East Camp, with an area of about 1,000 acres between the east side of Naval Station and Granby Street, had been sold off by the Army at the end of World War I.
- In addition to being known as "Naval Station Norfolk", another name for NGU is "Chambers Field".
- On July 12, 1921, the name was changed again under the command of Capt.
- The closest airport to Naval Station Norfolk (NGU) is Norfolk International Airport (ORF), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ESE of NGU.
- Naval Station Norfolk (NGU) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Naval Station Norfolk (NGU) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,762 miles (18,929 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- By then, the air detachment was recognized as one of the most important sources of trained naval aviators.
Facts about Santa Maria Airport (SMA):
- Santa Maria Airport (SMA) currently has only 1 runway.
- The airport at Santa Maria was part of a larger complex of buildings and infrastructures constructed in the 20th century.
- Because of Santa Maria Airport's relatively low elevation of 308 feet, planes can take off or land at Santa Maria 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.
- For a while, Air France's supersonic Concordes were routed to Santa Maria on refueling layovers between Paris and Caracas.
- A chartered Boeing 707-300, Independent Air Flight 1851 from Bergamo, Italy in 1989 crashed on approach to Santa Maria Airport, when it struck the Pico Alto mountain.
- Santa Maria Airport handled 93,436 passengers last year.
- In addition to being known as "Santa Maria Airport", another name for SMA is "Aeroporto de Santa Maria".
- The furthest airport from Santa Maria Airport (SMA) is Moruya Airport (MYA), which is nearly antipodal to Santa Maria Airport (meaning Santa Maria Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Moruya Airport), and is located 12,166 miles (19,579 kilometers) away in Moruya, New South Wales, Australia.
- The closest airport to Santa Maria Airport (SMA) is João Paulo II Airport (PDL), which is located 60 miles (97 kilometers) NNW of SMA.