Nonstop flight route between Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States and Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Santa Fe Municipal Airport (SAF), Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States and King Shaka International (DUR), Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,931 miles (or 15,983 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 Santa Fe Municipal Airport and King Shaka International, 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 Santa Fe Municipal Airport and King Shaka International. 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 Santa Fe Municipal Airport (SAF):

• The furthest airport from Santa Fe Municipal Airport (SAF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,167 miles (17,972 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Because of Santa Fe Municipal Airport's high elevation of 6,348 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at SAF. Combined with a high temperature, this could make SAF a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• On February 28, 2011, it was announced that the third daily flight to Dallas-Fort Worth would return in April as planned, and that a fourth daily flight would begin in July 2011.
• After initially extending the deadline for closure to June 15, 2013, on May 10 the FAA announced that all federal contract towers previously threatened with closure in 2013 would remain open through September 30, the end of the 2013 fiscal year, using previously unallocated funds in the agency's general budget.
• Santa Fe Municipal Airport (SAF) has 3 runways.
• In June 2007 the airport was upgraded to Class 1 to allow regional jet flights.
• Trans World Airlines had a flight a day each way until 1960.
• The closest airport to Santa Fe Municipal Airport (SAF) is Los Alamos Airport (LAM), which is located 21 miles (33 kilometers) NNW of SAF.

Facts about King Shaka International (DUR):

• King Shaka International (DUR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from King Shaka International (DUR) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,682 miles (18,801 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• Construction of the airport commenced on 24 August 2007, immediately after the approval of the EIA.
• In 2013 Skytrax announced that King Shaka International Airport was the best airport in the world handling under 5 million passengers.
• The closest airport to King Shaka International (DUR) is Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) W of DUR.
• The check-in concourse, located on the upper floor, contains 72 check-in counters and 18 self-service kiosks, as well as ticket offices for the various airlines operating out of the airport.
• Because of King Shaka International's relatively low elevation of 295 feet, planes can take off or land at King Shaka International 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.
• Despite wide expectations that the airport would be named "King Shaka International Airport", it emerged in October 2009 that the airport needed to undergo a formal naming process.