Nonstop flight route between Plymouth, United Kingdom and San Francisco, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Plymouth City Airport (PLH), Plymouth, United Kingdom and San Francisco International Airport (SFO), San Francisco, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,294 miles (or 8,519 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 Plymouth City Airport and San Francisco 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 Plymouth City Airport and San Francisco 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 Plymouth City Airport (PLH):

• In 1923, a mail flight, flown by Alan Cobham, to Croydon carried passengers from a grass strip at Chelson Meadow, Plymouth.
• The airport was officially closed by the Sutton Harbour Group on 23 December 2011.
• The furthest airport from Plymouth City Airport (PLH) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is nearly antipodal to Plymouth City Airport (meaning Plymouth City Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Dunedin International Airport), and is located 12,030 miles (19,361 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• Plymouth City Airport handled 157,933 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Plymouth City Airport (PLH) is Exeter International Airport (EXT), which is located 37 miles (60 kilometers) NE of PLH.
• The airport was owned by Plymouth City Council and leased to Plymouth based company Sutton Harbour Holdings.
• The airport in its entirety was closed on 23 December 2011 due to the present owners, Sutton Harbour Holdings making a case that the airport was non-viable.
• Because of Plymouth City Airport's relatively low elevation of 476 feet, planes can take off or land at Plymouth City 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.
• Plymouth City Airport (PLH) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about San Francisco International Airport (SFO):

• SFO was one of the first airports to implement a Fly Quiet Program which grades individual air carriers on their performance on noise abatement procedures while flying in and out of SFO.
• Because of San Francisco International Airport's relatively low elevation of 13 feet, planes can take off or land at San Francisco 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.
• SFO has expanded through the decades.
• Since the mid-2000s recovery at SFO has been evident.
• San Francisco International Airport handled 44,477,209 passengers last year.
• SFO experiences delays in overcast weather when only two of the airport's four runways can be used at a time because the centerlines of the parallel runways are only 750 feet apart.
• The first international nonstops were ANA/BCPA DC-4s to Vancouver in 1946-47.
• The furthest airport from San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,365 miles (18,290 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• The closest airport to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is Half Moon Bay AirportHalf Moon Bay Flight Strip (HAF), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) SW of SFO.
• SFO's international terminal was designed by Craig W.
• SFO is the largest airport in the Bay Area and the second busiest in California, after Los Angeles International Airport.
• San Francisco International Airport (SFO) has 4 runways.