Nonstop flight route between Pinellas County, Florida (near St. Petersburg and Clearwater), United States and Torrejón de Ardoz, Spain:

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 Madrid–Torrejón Airport (TOJ), Torrejón de Ardoz, Spain would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,461 miles (or 7,180 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 Madrid–Torrejón 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 St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport and Madrid–Torrejón 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 St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport (PIE):

• St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport (PIE) has 4 runways.
• 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.
• 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.
• With the advent of the Jet age, the airport's runway was extended northward into Tampa Bay and the first commercial jet service to PIE was operated by Northwest.
• 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 its lesser pace of operations, PIE is frequently used instead of TPA as a destination airport by pilots of private planes and executive jets for access to the Tampa Bay Area.
• 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.
• In the 1950s some airlines provided service to both PIE and TPA, such as Delta Air Lines, Eastern Air Lines, National Airlines and Northwest Airlines.
• This historic event marked the beginning of commercial air transportation anywhere in the world and is commemorated by a replica of the Benoist aircraft and a plaque at the airport terminal baggage claim area.

Facts about Madrid–Torrejón Airport (TOJ):

• In addition to being known as "Madrid–Torrejón Airport", other names for TOJ include "Aeropuerto de Madrid/Barajas", "Torrejón Air Base" and "Base Aérea de Torrejón".
• Madrid–Torrejón Airport (TOJ) currently has only 1 runway.
• In accordance with the 1988 agreement, the USAF portion of the base was returned to the Spanish government on 21 May 1996, with the 401st Tactical Fighter Wing being transferred to Aviano Air Base, Italy without personnel or equipment.
• The closest airport to Madrid–Torrejón Airport (TOJ) is Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport[1] (MAD), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) WSW of TOJ.
• In January 1988, Spain and the United States announced jointly that agreement had been reached in principle on a new base agreement with an initial term of eight years, essentially meeting the conditions demanded by Spain.
• The furthest airport from Madrid–Torrejón Airport (TOJ) is Palmerston North Airport (PMR), which is nearly antipodal to Madrid–Torrejón Airport (meaning Madrid–Torrejón Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Palmerston North Airport), and is located 12,386 miles (19,933 kilometers) away in Palmerston North, New Zealand.