Nonstop flight route between Santa Maria, Portugal and Bloomington, Illinois, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Santa Maria Airport (SMA), Santa Maria, Portugal and Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI), Bloomington, Illinois, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,369 miles (or 5,421 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 Maria Airport and Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal, 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 Maria Airport and Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal. 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 Maria Airport (SMA):

• Santa Maria Airport handled 93,436 passengers last year.
• Because of Santa Maria Airport's relatively low elevation of 308 feet, planes can take off or land at Santa Maria 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.
• Santa Maria Airport (SMA) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Santa Maria Airport (SMA) is João Paulo II Airport (PDL), which is located 60 miles (97 kilometers) NNW of SMA.
• A chartered Boeing 707-300, Independent Air Flight 1851 from Bergamo, Italy in 1989 crashed on approach to Santa Maria Airport, when it struck the Pico Alto mountain.
• In addition to being known as "Santa Maria Airport", another name for SMA is "Aeroporto de Santa Maria".
• The forerunner of SATA Air Açores initiated services concurrently to São Miguel and Terceira from Santa Maria Airport on 5 August 1947, using a plane christened "Açor".
• The furthest airport from Santa Maria Airport (SMA) is Moruya Airport (MYA), which is nearly antipodal to Santa Maria Airport (meaning Santa Maria Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Moruya Airport), and is located 12,166 miles (19,579 kilometers) away in Moruya, New South Wales, Australia.

Facts about Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI):

• Hangar rental, fueling, and aircraft maintenance facilities are available.
• Because of Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal's relatively low elevation of 871 feet, planes can take off or land at Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal 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 Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI) is General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) WNW of BMI.
• Despite the efforts of local aviation enthusiasts and the business community, attempts to establish long-term passenger service at the Normal field ended in failure.
• Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI) has 2 runways.
• The 2013 Federal sequester will result in the closure of the airport's control tower.
• The furthest airport from Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,045 miles (17,775 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The airport covers 1,968 acres at an elevation of 871 feet.
• On November 5, 2001, the airport opened a new $14 million terminal building, three times larger than the previous terminal.
• Nothing survives of the old airport, but a historic marker near the north end of Constitution Trail commemorates the site.
• Opposition to a municipally operated airport weakened with the promise of federal dollars through the Civil Works Administration, one of President Franklin D.