Nonstop flight route between Praia, Cape Verde and Springfield/Chicopee, Massachusetts, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Praia International Airport (RAI), Praia, Cape Verde and Westover Air Reserve Base (CEF), Springfield/Chicopee, Massachusetts, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,457 miles (or 5,564 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 Praia International Airport and Westover Air Reserve 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 Praia International Airport and Westover Air Reserve 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 Praia International Airport (RAI):

• The furthest airport from Praia International Airport (RAI) is Bellona/Anua Airport (BNY), which is nearly antipodal to Praia International Airport (meaning Praia International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Bellona/Anua Airport), and is located 12,103 miles (19,477 kilometers) away in Anua, Bellona Island, Solomon Islands.
• Praia International Airport (RAI) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Praia International Airport's relatively low elevation of 230 feet, planes can take off or land at Praia 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 closest airport to Praia International Airport (RAI) is Maio Airport (MMO), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) NE of RAI.

Facts about Westover Air Reserve Base (CEF):

• In addition to being known as "Westover Air Reserve Base", another name for CEF is "Westover ARB".
• The closest airport to Westover Air Reserve Base (CEF) is Westfield-Barnes Regional Airport (BAF), which is located only 10 miles (15 kilometers) WSW of CEF.
• The first organization at the base was the 10th Signal Platoon in June 1940.
• The furthest airport from Westover Air Reserve Base (CEF) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,731 miles (18,880 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Detonation in August 1949 by the Soviet Union of an atomic bomb spawned a new strategy in the military, calling for massive retaliation in the event of an attack.
• On 1 June 1948 Air Transport Command was reorganized into the Military Air Transport Service, and Westover was designated as Headquarters, Atlantic Division, Military Air Transport Service.
• On 1 February 1946 Westover became an Air Transport Command base which meant that it was the terminus for air routes around the world.
• Plans for Westover Field were made in 1939 as a result of the Nazi Germany invasion of Poland in 1939.