Nonstop flight route between Columbus, Nebraska, United States and Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from OLU to LAE:
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- About this route
- OLU Airport Information
- LAE Airport Information
- Facts about OLU
- Facts about LAE
- Map of Nearest Airports to OLU
- List of Nearest Airports to OLU
- Map of Furthest Airports from OLU
- List of Furthest Airports from OLU
- Map of Nearest Airports to LAE
- List of Nearest Airports to LAE
- Map of Furthest Airports from LAE
- List of Furthest Airports from LAE
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Columbus Municipal Airport (OLU), Columbus, Nebraska, United States and Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE), Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,853 miles (or 12,639 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 Columbus Municipal Airport and Lae Nadzab 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 Columbus Municipal Airport and Lae Nadzab Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | OLU / KOLU |
Airport Name: | Columbus Municipal Airport |
Location: | Columbus, Nebraska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 41°26'53"N by 97°20'34"W |
Area Served: | Columbus, Nebraska |
Operator/Owner: | Columbus Airport Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 1447 feet (441 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from OLU |
More Information: | OLU Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | LAE / AYNZ |
Airport Name: | Lae Nadzab Airport |
Location: | Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea |
GPS Coordinates: | 6°34'10"S by 146°43'33"E |
Operator/Owner: | Papua New Guinea Office of Civil Aviation |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 239 feet (73 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from LAE |
More Information: | LAE Maps & Info |
Facts about Columbus Municipal Airport (OLU):
- The closest airport to Columbus Municipal Airport (OLU) is Norfolk Regional Airport (OFK), which is located 37 miles (60 kilometers) N of OLU.
- Columbus Municipal Airport (OLU) has 2 runways.
- The furthest airport from Columbus Municipal Airport (OLU) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,601 miles (17,060 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
Facts about Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE):
- Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) currently has only 1 runway.
- Because of Lae Nadzab Airport's relatively low elevation of 239 feet, planes can take off or land at Lae Nadzab 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.
- Between April 1943 and July 1943, the Allied Geographical Section of South West Pacific Area conducted reconnaissance after the Japanese invasion.
- Lae Nadzab Airport is a regional airport located at Nadzab 42 kilometres outside of Lae, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea along the Highlands Highway.
- Nadzab is located on the Erap River, 5 kilometres North of the Markham River.
- The closest airport to Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) is Bulolo Airport (BUL), which is located 45 miles (72 kilometers) S of LAE.
- The furthest airport from Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) is Governador Carlos Wilson Airport (FEN), which is located 11,714 miles (18,852 kilometers) away in Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco, Brazil.
- After Lae was liberated, the United States Army built Nadzab airport and developed it into a massive airbase complex.
- Lae airfield continued to be used by Air Niugini and other third-level airlines until 1987.