Nonstop flight route between Safford, Arizona, United States and Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from SAD to LAE:
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- About this route
- SAD Airport Information
- LAE Airport Information
- Facts about SAD
- Facts about LAE
- Map of Nearest Airports to SAD
- List of Nearest Airports to SAD
- Map of Furthest Airports from SAD
- List of Furthest Airports from SAD
- Map of Nearest Airports to LAE
- List of Nearest Airports to LAE
- Map of Furthest Airports from LAE
- List of Furthest Airports from LAE
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Safford Regional Airport (SAD), Safford, Arizona, United States and Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE), Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,255 miles (or 11,676 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 Safford Regional Airport and Lae Nadzab 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 Safford Regional Airport and Lae Nadzab Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SAD / KSAD |
Airport Name: | Safford Regional Airport |
Location: | Safford, Arizona, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 32°51'11"N by 109°38'6"W |
Area Served: | Safford, Arizona |
Operator/Owner: | City of Safford |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 3179 feet (969 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from SAD |
More Information: | SAD Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | LAE / AYNZ |
Airport Name: | Lae Nadzab Airport |
Location: | Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea |
GPS Coordinates: | 6°34'10"S by 146°43'33"E |
Operator/Owner: | Papua New Guinea Office of Civil Aviation |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 239 feet (73 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from LAE |
More Information: | LAE Maps & Info |
Facts about Safford Regional Airport (SAD):
- The airport covers 630 acres at an elevation of 3,179 feet.
- The closest airport to Safford Regional Airport (SAD) is Greenlee County Airport (CFT), which is located 26 miles (41 kilometers) ENE of SAD.
- Safford Regional Airport (SAD) has 2 runways.
- The furthest airport from Safford Regional Airport (SAD) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,434 miles (18,401 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
Facts about Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE):
- Because of Lae Nadzab Airport's relatively low elevation of 239 feet, planes can take off or land at Lae Nadzab 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 Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) is Governador Carlos Wilson Airport (FEN), which is located 11,714 miles (18,852 kilometers) away in Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco, Brazil.
- The closest airport to Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) is Bulolo Airport (BUL), which is located 45 miles (72 kilometers) S of LAE.
- In about 1910 the Gabmatsung/Gabmazung Lutheran mission station was established at Nadzab.
- Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) currently has only 1 runway.
- Lae airfield continued to be used by Air Niugini and other third-level airlines until 1987.
- The airfield in Lae was operating at the same time as Nadzab but business was significantly lost to the new airport complex became fully operational in 1977.
- After Lae was liberated, the United States Army built Nadzab airport and developed it into a massive airbase complex.