Nonstop flight route between Palembang, Sumatra, Indonesia and Lompoc, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) (PLM), Palembang, Sumatra, Indonesia and Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG), Lompoc, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,798 miles (or 14,159 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 Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) and Vandenberg Air Force 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 Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) and Vandenberg Air Force 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 Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) (PLM):

• The closest airport to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) (PLM) is Sultan Thaha Airport (DJB), which is located 114 miles (183 kilometers) NW of PLM.
• Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) (PLM) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II)'s relatively low elevation of 121 feet, planes can take off or land at Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) 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 addition to being known as "Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II)", another name for PLM is "Bandar Udara Internasional Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II (SMB II)".
• Between the development undertaken is an extension of the runway along the 300 meters x 60 meters to 3,000 meters x 60 meters, construction vehicle parking area of 20,000 meters which can accommodate 1,000 vehicles as well as the construction of a three-floor passenger terminal covering 13,000 square meters which can accommodate 1,250 passengers, equipped aerobridges and cargo terminals, and other support buildings covering an area of 1900 square meters.
• The furthest airport from Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) (PLM) is Benito Salas Airport (NVA), which is nearly antipodal to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) (meaning Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport (SMB II) is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Benito Salas Airport), and is located 12,433 miles (20,009 kilometers) away in Neiva, Colombia.
• At least as early as 1938, Palembang was served by a civil airport at Talang Betutu, operating as a Customs Aerodrome equipped with wireless and direction finding equipment, and basic ground facilities.

Facts about Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG):

• Vandenberg AFB is a Department of Defense space and missile testing base, with a mission of placing satellites into polar orbit from the West Coast, using expendable boosters.
• In addition to being known as "Vandenberg Air Force Base", another name for VBG is "Vandenberg AFB".
• The furthest airport from Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,479 miles (18,473 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• The closest airport to Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG) is Lompoc Airport (LPC), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SE of VBG.
• Construction of the Army camp began in September 1941.
• 4th Space Launch Squadron
• Joint Functional Component Command for Space
• 576th Flight Test Squadron
• General Vandenberg retired from the Air Force in June 1953.