Nonstop flight route between Île Sainte-Marie, Madagascar and Valenciennes, France:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from SMS to XVS:
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- About this route
- SMS Airport Information
- XVS Airport Information
- Facts about SMS
- Facts about XVS
- 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 XVS
- List of Nearest Airports to XVS
- Map of Furthest Airports from XVS
- List of Furthest Airports from XVS
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Sainte Marie Airport (SMS), Île Sainte-Marie, Madagascar and Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS), Valenciennes, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,442 miles (or 8,758 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 Valenciennes-Denain 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 Valenciennes-Denain 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: | XVS / LFAV |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Valenciennes, France |
| GPS Coordinates: | 50°19'32"N by 3°27'39"E |
| Elevation: | 177 feet (54 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from XVS |
| More Information: | XVS Maps & Info |
Facts about Sainte Marie Airport (SMS):
- Sainte Marie Airport (SMS) currently has only 1 runway.
- 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.
- The closest airport to Sainte Marie Airport (SMS) is Toamasino Airport (TMM), which is located 76 miles (122 kilometers) SSW of 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.
Facts about Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS):
- In French control after the war, the airport sat abandoned for several years.
- The closest airport to Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) is Lille Airport (LIL), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) NW of XVS.
- Because of Valenciennes-Denain Airport's relatively low elevation of 177 feet, planes can take off or land at Valenciennes-Denain 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.
- In addition, a reconnaissance unit, Aufklärungsgruppe 12 was assigned to Denain in October 1940 with Henschel Hs 126 twin-seat light observation planes.
- The furthest airport from Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,987 miles (19,291 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) currently has only 1 runway.
- After the construction of a military airfield at Denain, the airfield was reactivated by the Luftwaffe, stationing Jagdgeschwader 3, a day fighter-interceptor unit assigned to the "Defense of the Reich" campaign against the American Eighth Air Force heavy bombers attacking targets in Occupied Europe and Germany.
- In addition to being known as "Valenciennes-Denain Airport", another name for XVS is "(Advanced Landing Ground A-83/B-74)".
