Nonstop flight route between San Juan, Puerto Rico and Anchorage, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU), San Juan, Puerto Rico and Merrill Field (MRI), Anchorage, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,903 miles (or 7,890 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 Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport and Merrill Field, 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 Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport and Merrill Field. 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 Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU):

• Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU) is Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport (SIG), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) W of SJU.
• The furthest airport from Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU) is Barrow Island Airport (BWB), which is nearly antipodal to Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (meaning Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Barrow Island Airport), and is located 12,246 miles (19,708 kilometers) away in Barrow Island, Western Australia, Australia.
• As of 2013, Agustín Arellano, CEO of Aerostar Airport Holdings, LLC, operator of the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport, announced major upgrades that have begun taking place.
• In addition to being known as "Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport", another name for SJU is "Aeropuerto Internacional Luis Muñoz Marín".
• Over $400 million was used to expand the airport facilities through 2011.
• Because of Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport's relatively low elevation of 9 feet, planes can take off or land at Luis Muñoz Marín 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.

Facts about Merrill Field (MRI):

• Merrill Field (MRI) has 3 runways.
• Merrill Field, located on the east end of 5th Avenue in Anchorage, Alaska, was the only airport serving Anchorage until 1951 when the introduction of ever larger and faster commercial aircraft required that an airfield with longer and heavier runways be built.
• The furthest airport from Merrill Field (MRI) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,545 miles (16,970 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• This was the first official airport in Anchorage when it opened in 1930.
• For 12-month period ending August 5, 2004, the airport had 191,550 aircraft operations, an average of 524 per day, 100% of which were general aviation.
• The closest airport to Merrill Field (MRI) is Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) NNE of MRI.
• Because of Merrill Field's relatively low elevation of 137 feet, planes can take off or land at Merrill Field 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.