Nonstop flight route between Île Sainte-Marie, Madagascar and Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from SMS to LAE:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- SMS Airport Information
- LAE Airport Information
- Facts about SMS
- Facts about LAE
- Map of Nearest Airports to SMS
- List of Nearest Airports to SMS
- Map of Furthest Airports from SMS
- List of Furthest Airports from SMS
- Map of Nearest Airports to LAE
- List of Nearest Airports to LAE
- Map of Furthest Airports from LAE
- List of Furthest Airports from LAE
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Sainte Marie Airport (SMS), Île Sainte-Marie, Madagascar and Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE), Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,538 miles (or 10,522 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 Sainte Marie Airport and Lae Nadzab 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 Sainte Marie Airport and Lae Nadzab Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SMS / FMMS |
Airport Name: | Sainte Marie Airport |
Location: | Île Sainte-Marie, Madagascar |
GPS Coordinates: | 17°5'38"S by 49°48'56"E |
Area Served: | Sainte Marie, Analanjirofo, Madagascar |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 7 feet (2 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SMS |
More Information: | SMS Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | LAE / AYNZ |
Airport Name: | Lae Nadzab Airport |
Location: | Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea |
GPS Coordinates: | 6°34'10"S by 146°43'33"E |
Operator/Owner: | Papua New Guinea Office of Civil Aviation |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 239 feet (73 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from LAE |
More Information: | LAE Maps & Info |
Facts about Sainte Marie Airport (SMS):
- The furthest airport from Sainte Marie Airport (SMS) is Guerrero Negro Airport (GUB), which is located 11,161 miles (17,962 kilometers) away in Guerrero Negro, Baja California Sur, Mexico.
- Because of Sainte Marie Airport's relatively low elevation of 7 feet, planes can take off or land at Sainte Marie 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.
- Sainte Marie Airport (SMS) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Sainte Marie Airport (SMS) is Toamasino Airport (TMM), which is located 76 miles (122 kilometers) SSW of SMS.
Facts about Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE):
- In about 1910 the Gabmatsung/Gabmazung Lutheran mission station was established at Nadzab.
- Lae airfield continued to be used by Air Niugini and other third-level airlines until 1987.
- Because of Lae Nadzab Airport's relatively low elevation of 239 feet, planes can take off or land at Lae Nadzab 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 closest airport to Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) is Bulolo Airport (BUL), which is located 45 miles (72 kilometers) S of LAE.
- The furthest airport from Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) is Governador Carlos Wilson Airport (FEN), which is located 11,714 miles (18,852 kilometers) away in Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco, Brazil.
- Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) currently has only 1 runway.
- Nadzab is located on the Erap River, 5 kilometres North of the Markham River.
- After Lae was liberated, the United States Army built Nadzab airport and developed it into a massive airbase complex.