Nonstop flight route between Patuxent River, Maryland, United States and Porto Santo, Madeira, Portugal:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Naval Air Station Patuxent River (NHK), Patuxent River, Maryland, United States and Porto Santo Airport (PXO), Porto Santo, Madeira, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,331 miles (or 5,361 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 Air Station Patuxent River and Porto Santo 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 Air Station Patuxent River and Porto Santo Airport. 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 Naval Air Station Patuxent River (NHK):

• It is home to Headquarters, Naval Air Systems Command, the U.S.
• The closest airport to Naval Air Station Patuxent River (NHK) is St. Mary's County Regional Airport (LTW), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) WNW of NHK.
• Because of Naval Air Station Patuxent River's relatively low elevation of 39 feet, planes can take off or land at Naval Air Station Patuxent River 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 base was also was used as a filming location for the Harrison Ford film Random Hearts.
• Naval Air Station Patuxent River (NHK) has 3 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Naval Air Station Patuxent River", other names for NHK include "Trapnell Field" and "KNHK - FAA: NHK".
• Commissioned on April 1, 1943 on land largely acquired through eminent domain, the air station grew rapidly in response to World War II and continued to evolve through the Cold War to the present.
• The furthest airport from Naval Air Station Patuxent River (NHK) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,728 miles (18,874 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• By 1965, reconnaissance Squadron VQ-4, based at NAS Patuxent River, began using Lockheed C-130s equipped with special communications equipment to perform their around-the-clock Take Charge and Move Out mission.
• A highway extension to the new air station was required by the project—250,000 tons of material were transported by either truck or water routes during a year of construction.

Facts about Porto Santo Airport (PXO):

• Because of Porto Santo Airport's relatively low elevation of 338 feet, planes can take off or land at Porto Santo 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.
• In 1959, its runway was built with an initial length of 2,000 m.
• Porto Santo Airport (PXO) currently has only 1 runway.
• The airport's infrastructure has improved over time, with increases to the runway length and in ramp surface.
• Porto Santo Airport handled 106,592 passengers last year.
• In addition to being known as "Porto Santo Airport", another name for PXO is "Aeroporto de Porto Santo".
• The closest airport to Porto Santo Airport (PXO) is Madeira Airport (FNC), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) SW of PXO.
• The furthest airport from Porto Santo Airport (PXO) is Lord Howe Island Airport (LDH), which is nearly antipodal to Porto Santo Airport (meaning Porto Santo Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Lord Howe Island Airport), and is located 12,150 miles (19,553 kilometers) away in Lord Howe Island, New South Wales, Australia.