Nonstop flight route between Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Tambohorano, Madagascar:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Santos Dumont Airport (SDU), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Tambohorano Airport (WTA), Tambohorano, Madagascar would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,579 miles (or 8,979 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 Santos Dumont Airport and Tambohorano 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 Santos Dumont Airport and Tambohorano Airport. 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 Santos Dumont Airport (SDU):

• It was announced on 5 August 2009 that in order to renew its operational licence the Rio de Janeiro State Environment Institute – INEA would require Santos Dumont Airport to adjust operational standards.
• On 21 May 1959 a formal agreement between Varig, Cruzeiro do Sul, and VASP created an air shuttle service, the first of its kind in the world.
• On 31 August 2009, Infraero unveiled a BRL152.2 million investment plan to upgrade Santos Dumont Airport, particularly the passenger arrivals terminal.
• Santos Dumont Airport (SDU) has 2 runways.
• Adjoining the original seaplane terminal, Pan American World Airways and its Brazilian subsidiary Panair do Brasil constructed their own dedicated terminal for seaplanes and aircraft with landing gear.
• Over the years, the airport's main runway has been extended several times, first to 2,300 feet, then to 3,000 feet, and finally 4,340 feet.
• Due to a fire that almost destroyed the main terminal in 1999, the passenger terminal building was closed for 6 months.
• With the gradual shift of international operations to Rio de Janeiro-Galeão Airport opened in 1952, Rio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont lost its place as an international hub, but for many years retained its position of a major hub for domestic traffic, particularly until 1960, when the capital of Brazil was moved to Brasília.
• Because of Santos Dumont Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Santos Dumont 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.
• A new public terminal building for seaplanes was inaugurated on 29 October 1938.
• Santos Dumont Airport handled 9,204,603 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Santos Dumont Airport (SDU) is Rio de Janeiro/Galeão–Antonio Carlos Jobim International Airport (GIG), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) NW of SDU.
• The furthest airport from Santos Dumont Airport (SDU) is Central Field (Iwo Jima)Motoyama No. 2Airfield No. 2 (IWO), which is nearly antipodal to Santos Dumont Airport (meaning Santos Dumont Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Central Field (Iwo Jima)Motoyama No. 2Airfield No. 2), and is located 12,125 miles (19,513 kilometers) away in Iwo Jima, Bonin Islands, Japan.
• In addition to being known as "Santos Dumont Airport", another name for SDU is "Aeroporto Santos Dumont".

Facts about Tambohorano Airport (WTA):

• Because of Tambohorano Airport's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Tambohorano 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 Tambohorano Airport (WTA) is Maintirano Airport (MXT), which is located 40 miles (64 kilometers) S of WTA.
• The furthest airport from Tambohorano Airport (WTA) is Hilo International Airport (ITO), which is located 11,182 miles (17,996 kilometers) away in Hilo, Hawaii, United States.