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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lake Cumberland Regional Airport (SME), Somerset, Kentucky, United States and RAF Lakenheath (LKZ), Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,061 miles (or 6,535 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 RAF Lakenheath, 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 RAF Lakenheath. 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 (SME) currently has only 1 runway.
• Lake Cumberland Regional Airport covers an area of 288 acres at an elevation of 927 feet above mean sea level.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about RAF Lakenheath (LKZ):

• The first use of Lakenheath Warren as a Royal Flying Corps airfield was in World War I, when the area was made into a bombing and ground-attack range for aircraft flying from elsewhere in the area.
• Aircraft of the 48th FW carry the tail code "LN".
• In 1940, the Air Ministry selected Lakenheath as an alternative for RAF Mildenhall and used it as a decoy airfield.
• In April 1947, RAF Bomber Command returned to Lakenheath and had the runways repaired, resurfaced, and readied for operations by May 1948.
• The closest airport to RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is RAF Mildenhall (MHZ), which is located only 4 miles (7 kilometers) SW of LKZ.
• Taking part in more than 350 operations, more than half mine-laying, 149 Squadron had one of the lowest percentage loss rates of all Stirling squadrons.
• Many SAC Squadrons had aircraft at RAF Lakenheath on a transitotry basis without any recorded deployment to the base.
• The furthest airport from RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,827 miles (19,034 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Lakenheath Airfield was used by RAF flying units on detachment late in 1941.
• Royal Air Force Lakenheath or RAF Lakenheath, is a Royal Air Force station near the town of Lakenheath in Suffolk, England located 4.7 miles north-east of Mildenhall, Suffolk and 8.3 miles west of Thetford, Norfolk.