Nonstop flight route between Portland, Maine, United States and Bethel, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Portland International Jetport (PWM), Portland, Maine, United States and Bethel Airport (BET), Bethel, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,706 miles (or 5,964 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 Portland International Jetport and Bethel 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 Portland International Jetport and Bethel 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 Portland International Jetport (PWM):

• 1987 saw the arrival of Continental Airlines, when the airline bought PEOPLExpress and took over their routes.
• Because of Portland International Jetport's relatively low elevation of 76 feet, planes can take off or land at Portland International Jetport 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 1981 Air New England ceased operations and pulled out of the Jetport after 11 years.
• The furthest airport from Portland International Jetport (PWM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,705 miles (18,838 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In 1972 Northeast Airlines was bought by Delta Air Lines which retained its routes to Bangor, Boston, and New York.
• Peoplexpress Airlines arrived in 1983, the first jet competitor to Northeast/Delta at PWM.
• Portland International Jetport (PWM) has 2 runways.
• Boston-Maine Airways had a monopoly on passenger air travel at Portland, which continued after the airline was renamed Northeast Airlines.
• The closest airport to Portland International Jetport (PWM) is Naval Air Station Brunswick (NHZ), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) NE of PWM.
• On June 7, 2007 AirTran Airways began seasonal service to Baltimore-Washington, and to Orlando, Florida.

Facts about Bethel Airport (BET):

• The closest airport to Bethel Airport (BET) is Bethel Seaplane Base (JBT), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) E of BET.
• Bethel Airport (BET) has 3 runways.
• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 140,291 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 134,848 enplanements in 2009, and 144,353 in 2010.
• Because of Bethel Airport's relatively low elevation of 126 feet, planes can take off or land at Bethel 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 addition to being known as "Bethel Airport", other names for BET include "(former Bethel Air Base)" and "(former Todd Army Airfield)".
• Bethel Airport covers an area of 1,056 acres at an elevation of 126 feet above mean sea level.
• The furthest airport from Bethel Airport (BET) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,584 miles (17,034 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.