Nonstop flight route between Pago Pago, American Samoa and Colombo, Sri Lanka:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Pago Pago International Airport (PPG), Pago Pago, American Samoa and Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB), Colombo, Sri Lanka would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,636 miles (or 12,289 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 Pago Pago International Airport and Bandaranaike 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 Pago Pago International Airport and Bandaranaike 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 Pago Pago International Airport (PPG):

• The original runway alignments were 09/27 x 500 feet ) and 14/32 x 200 feet ) and were constructed of compact coral with capability to handle 65 fighter aircraft and 12 medium to heavy bombers.
• Because of Pago Pago International Airport's relatively low elevation of 32 feet, planes can take off or land at Pago Pago 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.
• The furthest airport from Pago Pago International Airport (PPG) is Zinder Airport (ZND), which is nearly antipodal to Pago Pago International Airport (meaning Pago Pago International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Zinder Airport), and is located 12,396 miles (19,950 kilometers) away in Zinder, Niger.
• The airport was a vital link to the Samoan Islands until the runway at Faleolo International Airport in Independent Samoa was improved and lengthened to handle larger than Boeing 737 type aircraft in 1984.
• Tasman Empire Airways Limited, or TEAL, the predecessor to what is now Air New Zealand, offered Douglas DC-6 flights from Nadi to Pago Pago and onwards to Tahiti in 1954 as part of its Coral Route Service.
• Pago Pago International Airport (PPG) has 2 runways.
• The American Samoan government is looking into legal means to overcome current US cabotage rules that forbid foreign carriers from entering and serving the Pago Pago – Honolulu or Pago Pago – Los Angeles routes.
• The Departure and Arrival terminal also went through a major expansion in the mid-1970s where buildings and space was doubled in size to handle more passengers.
• The closest airport to Pago Pago International Airport (PPG) is Ofu Airport (OFU), which is located 69 miles (112 kilometers) E of PPG.

Facts about Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB):

• In addition to being known as "Bandaranaike International Airport", another name for CMB is "බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළபண்டாரநாயக்க பன்னாட்டு விமான நிலையம்".
• The furthest airport from Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,614 miles (18,691 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• Bandaranaike International Airport is equipped with 18 double jetway gates in preparation for airlines introducing the Airbus A380.
• Bandaranaike International Airport handled 7,328,798 passengers last year.
• Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) currently has only 1 runway.
• On 7 November 1971 the first Boeing 747 landing took place, the Boeing 747-200B was operated by Condor was carrying German tourists from Frankfurt.
• On 26 July, The Criminal Investigations Department of Sri Lanka police set up a new security system at the Bandaranaike International Airport at Katunayake to identify criminals.
• In 1957 it closed as the British left the island, and SWRD Bandaranaike removed all the British Military airfields from Ceylon, the airfield was handed over to the Royal Ceylon Air Force and renamed Katunayake.
• The second stage will involve the acquisition of 600 hectares of public land, the construction of a runway capable of accommodating new-generation airplanes, an aircraft repair and maintenance center, an arrival and a departure terminal, a shopping arcade, a cargo complex connected to the airport by rail and a multistory car park.
• Because of Bandaranaike International Airport's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at Bandaranaike 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.
• Bandaranaike International Airport at Katunayake, Sri Lanka, is 30 kilometers north of the island nation's capital of Colombo.
• The closest airport to Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) is Ratmalana Airport (RML), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) S of CMB.