Nonstop flight route between Santa Maria, California, United States and Beirut, Lebanon:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX), Santa Maria, California, United States and Beirut Air Base (BEY), Beirut, Lebanon would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,440 miles (or 11,974 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 Santa Maria Public Airport and Beirut Air Base, 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 Santa Maria Public Airport and Beirut Air Base. 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 Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX):

• Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Santa Maria Public Airport", another name for SMX is "Capt. G. Allan Hancock FieldSanta Maria Army Airfield".
• A 4,000-square-foot baggage claim facility opened in 2007.
• The furthest airport from Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,466 miles (18,453 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• Santa Maria Public Airport is three miles south of Santa Maria, in northern Santa Barbara County, California.
• Because of Santa Maria Public Airport's relatively low elevation of 261 feet, planes can take off or land at Santa Maria Public 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 Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) is Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) SSW of SMX.
• The first airline to serve Santa Maria was Southwest Airways operating Douglas DC-3 prop aircraft.
• During its use by the military Santa Maria AAF also controlled Estrella Army Airfield, near Paso Robles as an auxiliary airfield to support the pilot training activity.

Facts about Beirut Air Base (BEY):

• In addition to being known as "Beirut Air Base", another name for BEY is "قاعدة بيروت الجوية".
• The military base is currently the home of the Tenth Squadron and Eleventh Squadron, which operate Bell UH-1H Hueys.
• The closest airport to Beirut Air Base (BEY) is Kiryat Shmona Airport (KSW), which is located 42 miles (68 kilometers) S of BEY.
• Beirut Air Base (BEY) has 2 runways.
• Because of Beirut Air Base's relatively low elevation of 87 feet, planes can take off or land at Beirut Air Base 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.
• Currently, the Lebanese Air Force occupies part of the west end of the Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport and has been the base of most of the helicopter force for almost 50 years, which include the Hawker Hunters, Fouga Magisters and other aircraft during certain periods.
• The furthest airport from Beirut Air Base (BEY) is Rurutu Airport (RUR), which is located 11,547 miles (18,582 kilometers) away in Rurutu, French Polynesia.