Nonstop flight route between San Diego, California, United States and Cape Town, South Africa:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from SDM to CPT:
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- About this route
- SDM Airport Information
- CPT Airport Information
- Facts about SDM
- Facts about CPT
- Map of Nearest Airports to SDM
- List of Nearest Airports to SDM
- Map of Furthest Airports from SDM
- List of Furthest Airports from SDM
- Map of Nearest Airports to CPT
- List of Nearest Airports to CPT
- Map of Furthest Airports from CPT
- List of Furthest Airports from CPT
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Brown Field Municipal Airport (SDM), San Diego, California, United States and Cape Town International Airport (CPT), Cape Town, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,889 miles (or 15,915 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 Brown Field Municipal Airport and Cape Town International 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 Brown Field Municipal Airport and Cape Town International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SDM / KSDM |
Airport Name: | Brown Field Municipal Airport |
Location: | San Diego, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 32°34'19"N by 116°58'49"W |
Area Served: | San Diego, California |
Operator/Owner: | City of San Diego |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 526 feet (160 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from SDM |
More Information: | SDM Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | CPT / FACT |
Airport Name: | Cape Town International Airport |
Location: | Cape Town, South Africa |
GPS Coordinates: | 33°58'9"S by 18°35'49"E |
Area Served: | Cape Town |
Operator/Owner: | Airports Company South Africa |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 151 feet (46 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from CPT |
More Information: | CPT Maps & Info |
Facts about Brown Field Municipal Airport (SDM):
- The furthest airport from Brown Field Municipal Airport (SDM) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,551 miles (18,590 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- The closest airport to Brown Field Municipal Airport (SDM) is Tijuana International Airport (TIJ), which is located only 2 miles (4 kilometers) SSE of SDM.
- Brown Field Municipal Airport (SDM) has 2 runways.
- In 1951 the Navy reopened Brown Field due to increased military activity from the Korean War.
- Tijuana Airport, an airline airport, is just over 1 nmi to the south across the Mexico-United States border, with a similar length and a slightly different runway orientation.
- On March 16, 1991, seven members of Reba McEntire's band and her road manager were among 10 people who died in the crash of a plane that departed from Brown Field.
- Brown Field is 1.5 miles north of the US/Mexico border in the Otay Mesa Community of the City of San Diego.
- Because of Brown Field Municipal Airport's relatively low elevation of 526 feet, planes can take off or land at Brown Field Municipal 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.
Facts about Cape Town International Airport (CPT):
- Cape Town International Airport handled 8,505,563 passengers last year.
- Cape Town International Airport (CPT) has 2 runways.
- The only hotel located within the airport precinct is the budget Road Lodge, owned by the City Lodge hotel chain group.
- The airport provides approximately 1,424 parking bays in the general parking area, and 1,748 parking bays in the multi-storey parkade located near the domestic terminal.
- Because of Cape Town International Airport's relatively low elevation of 151 feet, planes can take off or land at Cape Town 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 Cape Town International Airport (CPT) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 217 miles (349 kilometers) E of CPT.
- In preparation for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Cape Town International Airport was extensively expanded and renovated.
- The furthest airport from Cape Town International Airport (CPT) is Princeville Airport (HPV), which is located 11,616 miles (18,693 kilometers) away in Hanalei, Hawaii, United States.
- The terminal contains 10 air bridges, evenly split between domestic and international usage.