Nonstop flight route between Hattiesburg/Laurel, Mississippi, United States and Lajes, Azores, Portugal:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Hattiesburg–Laurel Regional Airport (PIB), Hattiesburg/Laurel, Mississippi, United States and Lajes Air Base (TER), Lajes, Azores, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,487 miles (or 5,612 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 Hattiesburg–Laurel Regional Airport 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 Hattiesburg–Laurel Regional Airport 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 Hattiesburg–Laurel Regional Airport (PIB):

• The furthest airport from Hattiesburg–Laurel Regional Airport (PIB) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,048 miles (17,780 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• Hattiesburg–Laurel Regional Airport covers an area of 1,170 acres at an elevation of 298 feet above mean sea level.
• The closest airport to Hattiesburg–Laurel Regional Airport (PIB) is Hattiesburg Bobby L. Chain Municipal Airport (HBG), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) SSE of PIB.
• Because of Hattiesburg–Laurel Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 298 feet, planes can take off or land at Hattiesburg–Laurel Regional 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.
• Hattiesburg–Laurel Regional Airport (PIB) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Lajes Air Base (TER):

• During the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Lajes Field also supported U.S.
• 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.
• 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.
• The United States and the United Kingdom transferred control of Lajes to Portugal in 1946.
• 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".
• Lajes Air Base (TER) currently has only 1 runway.
• Portugal has explored contingencies in the event the United States military eventually abandons Lajes, including the possibility of entering an agreement with the People's Republic of China.
• In 2009 Lajes provided rescue support of shipping lanes across the Atlantic, a safe haven for medical or mechanical emergency situations in aircraft crossing the Atlantic, and support for the USAF's continuing campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan.
• The closest airport to Lajes Air Base (TER) is Graciosa Airport (GRW), which is located 55 miles (89 kilometers) WNW of TER.
• Lajes Field was one of the two stopover and refueling bases for the first transatlantic crossing of non-rigid airships in 1944.
• 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.