Nonstop flight route between Sacramento, California, United States and Mbala, Northern Province, Zambia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sacramento International Airport (SMF), Sacramento, California, United States and Mbala Airport (MMQ), Mbala, Northern Province, Zambia would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,779 miles (or 15,737 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 Sacramento International Airport and Mbala 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 Sacramento International Airport and Mbala 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 Sacramento International Airport (SMF):

• Because of Sacramento International Airport's relatively low elevation of 27 feet, planes can take off or land at Sacramento 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.
• Sacramento hosted one of Alaska Airlines' last MD-80 flights, Sacramento to Seattle.
• The closest airport to Sacramento International Airport (SMF) is Sacramento Airport McClellan Airfield (MCC), which is located only 10 miles (17 kilometers) E of SMF.
• Southwest Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air, and Trans World Airlines were added to the list of carriers at Sacramento.
• The furthest airport from Sacramento International Airport (SMF) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,280 miles (18,154 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
• Sacramento International Airport (SMF) has 2 runways.
• Due to housing growth around Sacramento Executive Airport, the City of Sacramento Planning Department and the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors commissioned a study in the 1950s to move airline flights to a less populated area.
• Sacramento International Airport handled 8,910,570 passengers last year.
• As the nation’s economy was taking a hit in 2008, commercial aviation was challenged by reduced passenger numbers and increasing fuel and other costs.

Facts about Mbala Airport (MMQ):

• Because of Mbala Airport's high elevation of 5,454 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at MMQ. Combined with a high temperature, this could make MMQ a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The furthest airport from Mbala Airport (MMQ) is Cassidy International Airport (CXI), which is located 11,674 miles (18,788 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Kiribati.
• Mbala Airport (MMQ) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Mbala Airport (MMQ) is Kasaba Bay Airport (ZKB), which is located 51 miles (83 kilometers) WNW of MMQ.