Nonstop flight route between Johannesburg, South Africa and Santa Monica, California, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from QRA to SMO:
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- About this route
- QRA Airport Information
- SMO Airport Information
- Facts about QRA
- Facts about SMO
- Map of Nearest Airports to QRA
- List of Nearest Airports to QRA
- Map of Furthest Airports from QRA
- List of Furthest Airports from QRA
- Map of Nearest Airports to SMO
- List of Nearest Airports to SMO
- Map of Furthest Airports from SMO
- List of Furthest Airports from SMO
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Rand Airport (QRA), Johannesburg, South Africa and Santa Monica Airport (SMO), Santa Monica, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,380 miles (or 16,705 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 Rand Airport and Santa Monica 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 Rand Airport and Santa Monica Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | QRA / FAGM |
| Airport Name: | Rand Airport |
| Location: | Johannesburg, South Africa |
| GPS Coordinates: | 26°14'32"S by 28°9'3"E |
| Operator/Owner: | Rand Airport Management Company (Pty) Ltd. |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 5482 feet (1,671 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from QRA |
| More Information: | QRA Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SMO / KSMO |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Santa Monica, California, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 34°0'56"N by 118°27'5"W |
| Operator/Owner: | City of Santa Monica |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 177 feet (54 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from SMO |
| More Information: | SMO Maps & Info |
Facts about Rand Airport (QRA):
- The airport is also home to the Flying Lions Aerobatic Team.
- The control tower and main terminal building as seen from the airside.
- The furthest airport from Rand Airport (QRA) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,977 miles (19,275 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
- The closest airport to Rand Airport (QRA) is O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) NE of QRA.
- Today, the airport hosts air charter operators, flying schools and a number of aircraft maintenance organizations, as well as pilot shops, car hire and other aviation-related enterprises.
- Because of Rand Airport's high elevation of 5,482 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at QRA. Combined with a high temperature, this could make QRA a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- Rand Airport (QRA) has 2 runways.
Facts about Santa Monica Airport (SMO):
- The closest airport to Santa Monica Airport (SMO) is Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) SSE of SMO.
- In addition to being known as "Santa Monica Airport", other names for SMO include "Santa Monica Municipal Airport" and "Clover Field".
- Santa Monica Airport (SMO) currently has only 1 runway.
- In 1958, Donald Douglas asked the city to lengthen the airport's runway so that Douglas Aircraft could produce and test the DC-8 there.
- The furthest airport from Santa Monica Airport (SMO) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,484 miles (18,481 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
- In 2015, the City of Santa Monica's settlement agreement with the FAA concerning the airport expires.
- Night Departure Curfew – No takeoffs or engine starts are permitted between 11 pm and 7 am Monday through Friday, or until 8 am on weekends.
- Because of Santa Monica Airport's relatively low elevation of 177 feet, planes can take off or land at Santa Monica 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.
