Nonstop flight route between Santa Barbara, California, United States and Fakarava, Society Islands, French Polynesia:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from SBA to FAV:
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- About this route
- SBA Airport Information
- FAV Airport Information
- Facts about SBA
- Facts about FAV
- Map of Nearest Airports to SBA
- List of Nearest Airports to SBA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SBA
- List of Furthest Airports from SBA
- Map of Nearest Airports to FAV
- List of Nearest Airports to FAV
- Map of Furthest Airports from FAV
- List of Furthest Airports from FAV
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Santa Barbara Airport (SBA), Santa Barbara, California, United States and Fakarava Airport (FAV), Fakarava, Society Islands, French Polynesia would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,879 miles (or 6,242 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 Barbara Airport and Fakarava 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 Santa Barbara Airport and Fakarava Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SBA / KSBA |
Airport Name: | Santa Barbara Airport |
Location: | Santa Barbara, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 34°25'33"N by 119°50'25"W |
Area Served: | Santa Barbara, California |
Operator/Owner: | City of Santa Barbara |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 10 feet (3 meters) |
# of Runways: | 3 |
View all routes: | Routes from SBA |
More Information: | SBA Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | FAV / NTGF |
Airport Name: | Fakarava Airport |
Location: | Fakarava, Society Islands, French Polynesia |
GPS Coordinates: | 16°3'15"S by 145°39'24"W |
Elevation: | 0 feet (0 meters) |
View all routes: | Routes from FAV |
More Information: | FAV Maps & Info |
Facts about Santa Barbara Airport (SBA):
- In the 1951 war film Flying Leathernecks, John Wayne's character was stationed in Goleta.
- There are two fixed based operators on the field, Signature Flight Support and Atlantic Aviation, and three flight schools, Above All Aviation, Red Baron Aviation, and Spitfire Aviation.
- The furthest airport from Santa Barbara Airport (SBA) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,487 miles (18,486 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
- The closest airport to Santa Barbara Airport (SBA) is Santa Ynez Airport (SQA), which is located only 18 miles (29 kilometers) NW of SBA.
- As the prospect of war escalated the United States Government established a program to construct 250 airports across the country on a cost-sharing basis with local governments.
- Because of Santa Barbara Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Santa Barbara 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.
- As airplane manufacturing grew in the late 1930s that airstrip developed into an airfield.
- Santa Barbara Airport (SBA) has 3 runways.
- Airline flights began in 1932 on Pacific Seaboard Airlines.
Facts about Fakarava Airport (FAV):
- The furthest airport from Fakarava Airport (FAV) is Atbara Airport (ATB), which is nearly antipodal to Fakarava Airport (meaning Fakarava Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Atbara Airport), and is located 12,321 miles (19,828 kilometers) away in Atbara, Sudan.
- The closest airport to Fakarava Airport (FAV) is Apataki Airport (APK), which is located 60 miles (97 kilometers) WNW of FAV.
- Because of Fakarava Airport's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Fakarava 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.