Nonstop flight route between Penang, Malaysia and Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, Kingdom of the Netherlands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Penang International Airport (PEN), Penang, Malaysia and Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM), Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, Kingdom of the Netherlands would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,466 miles (or 16,844 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 Penang International Airport and Princess Juliana International 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 Penang International Airport and Princess Juliana International 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 Penang International Airport (PEN):

• Penang International Airport handled 5,487,751 passengers last year.
• Reports in newspapers recently suggest that the new low-cost carrier terminal is approaching final stages.
• Penang International Airport (PEN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The airport is the hub of two low-cost carriers, namely Firefly and AirAsia.
• The closest airport to Penang International Airport (PEN) is RMAF Butterworth (BWH), which is located only 14 miles (23 kilometers) NE of PEN.
• The furthest airport from Penang International Airport (PEN) is Cap. FAP Guillermo Concha Iberico International Airport (PIU), which is nearly antipodal to Penang International Airport (meaning Penang International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cap. FAP Guillermo Concha Iberico International Airport), and is located 12,375 miles (19,916 kilometers) away in Piura, Peru.
• In addition to being known as "Penang International Airport", another name for PEN is "Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Pulau Pinang".
• Because of Penang International Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Penang International 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.
• Penang International Airport won the Best Emerging Airport award in the 23rd annual Asian Freight and Supply Chain Awards 2009 and Airport of the Year in the 2009 Frost and Sullivan Asia Pacific Aerospace and Defence Awards.

Facts about Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM):

• To accommodate the growing international and local traffic of private aircraft, PJIA has a Fixed Base Operator building, offering office space and private lounges with dedicated customs.
• Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) is Karratha Airport (KTA), which is nearly antipodal to Princess Juliana International Airport (meaning Princess Juliana International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Karratha Airport), and is located 12,252 miles (19,718 kilometers) away in Karratha / Dampier, Western Australia, Australia.
• However, the oil price increases since 2003 began impacting discretionary air travel worldwide by early 2008, and the prospect of further price increases threatens to reverse the recent expansion of tourist travel by jet which began with the 1980s oil glut.
• Because the approach to Runway 10 is over water, pilots can become disoriented regarding their perceived altitude when operating under visual flight rules.
• The airport was started as a military airstrip in 1942.
• Because of Princess Juliana International Airport's relatively low elevation of 14 feet, planes can take off or land at Princess Juliana International 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.
• The closest airport to Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) is L'Espérance Airport Grand Case Airport (CCE), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) NE of SXM.