Nonstop flight route between Pinellas County, Florida (near St. Petersburg and Clearwater), United States and Sochi, Krasnodar, Russia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport (PIE), Pinellas County, Florida (near St. Petersburg and Clearwater), United States and Sochi International Airport, Russia (AER), Sochi, Krasnodar, Russia would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,314 miles (or 10,161 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 St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport and Sochi International Airport, Russia, 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 St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport and Sochi International Airport, Russia. 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 St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport (PIE):

• The closest airport to St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport (PIE) is Clearwater Air Park (CLW), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NW of PIE.
• Also, the airport recently completed a US$22 million renovation, including, among other things, expanding the gate sizes, new plumbing, and building loading bridges, as the current system requires all passengers to walk across the tarmac to the gate.
• The furthest airport from St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport (PIE) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,426 miles (18,388 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at St. Pete–Clearwater 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.
• St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport (PIE) has 4 runways.
• The 304th Fighter Squadron, a combat training unit of the 337th Fighter Group based P-40 Warhawks and, later, P-51 Mustangs at Pinellas Army Airfield for the duration of World War II.
• On June 6, 1982, Douglas C-47A N95C of Fromhagen Aviation was written off when the starboard engine failed on take-off on a training flight.
• This airport is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a primary commercial service airport since it has over 10,000 passenger boardings per year.

Facts about Sochi International Airport, Russia (AER):

• Sochi International Airport, Russia (AER) has 2 runways.
• The Sochi airport is certificated by Aviation Register of the MAC for its suitability for international flights.
• The furthest airport from Sochi International Airport, Russia (AER) is Totegegie Airport (GMR), which is located 10,999 miles (17,701 kilometers) away in Mangareva, Gambier Islands, French Polynesia.
• Because of Sochi International Airport, Russia's relatively low elevation of 89 feet, planes can take off or land at Sochi International Airport, Russia 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 Sochi International Airport, Russia (AER) is Sukhumi Babushara Airport (SUI), which is located 72 miles (116 kilometers) SE of AER.
• The original airfield was constructed to protect Russia's Black Sea coast during World War II.
• In addition to being known as "Sochi International Airport, Russia", another name for AER is "Международный Аэропорт Сочи".
• President Vladimir Putin removed Sochi International Airport from the list of strategic enterprises on 3 May 2006, superseding its previous status under Decree №1009 of 4 August 2004.