Nonstop flight route between Somerset, Kentucky, United States and London, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lake Cumberland Regional Airport (SME), Somerset, Kentucky, United States and Gatwick Airport (LGW), London, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,063 miles (or 6,539 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 Lake Cumberland Regional Airport and Gatwick 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 Lake Cumberland Regional Airport and Gatwick 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 Lake Cumberland Regional Airport (SME):

• Lake Cumberland Regional Airport is a public use airport located three nautical miles south of the central business district of Somerset, a city in Pulaski County, Kentucky, United States.
• Lake Cumberland Regional Airport (SME) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Lake Cumberland Regional Airport (SME) is London-Corbin Airport (LOZ), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) E of SME.
• Because of Lake Cumberland Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 927 feet, planes can take off or land at Lake Cumberland Regional 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 furthest airport from Lake Cumberland Regional Airport (SME) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,309 miles (18,200 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.

Facts about Gatwick Airport (LGW):

• The closest airport to Gatwick Airport (LGW) is Redhill Aerodrome (KRH), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) NNE of LGW.
• The furthest airport from Gatwick Airport (LGW) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,901 miles (19,152 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The London and Brighton Railway opened on 21 September 1841, and ran near Gatwick Manor.
• On 1 April 1961, BEA began operating half its London–Paris flights from Gatwick.
• In November 1948, the airport's owners warned that it might revert to private use by November 1949.
• Because of Gatwick Airport's relatively low elevation of 203 feet, planes can take off or land at Gatwick 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.
• By the late 1970s, government initiatives supporting Gatwick's development resulted in steady growth in passenger traffic.
• Gatwick Airport is located 2.7 nautical miles north of the centre of Crawley,West Sussex, and 29.5 miles south of Central London.
• A second 875-foot extension of Gatwick's runway was completed in 1970, bringing it to 9,075 ft and permitting non-stop jet flights to the US east coast with a full payload and full range and payload operations by British United Airways and Caledonian Airways BAC One-Eleven 500s.BEA Airtours made Gatwick their base.
• Between 1958 and 1959, Sudan Airways and BWIA West Indies Airways were among Gatwick's first scheduled overseas airlines.
• Gatwick Airport handled 35,444,206 passengers last year.
• Gatwick Airport (LGW) has 2 runways.
• Two fatal accidents occurred, raising questions about the airport's safety.