Nonstop flight route between Santa Maria, California, United States and Caen, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX), Santa Maria, California, United States and Caen la Mer Airport (CFR), Caen, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,563 miles (or 8,953 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 Caen la Mer 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 Santa Maria Public Airport and Caen la Mer 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 Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX):

• Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) has 2 runways.
• 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.
• Santa Maria Public Airport is three miles south of Santa Maria, in northern Santa Barbara County, California.
• 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.
• A runway extension opened on May 3, 2012, from 6,304 ft.
• In addition to being known as "Santa Maria Public Airport", another name for SMX is "Capt. G. Allan Hancock FieldSanta Maria Army Airfield".
• 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 airport was built by the United States Army during World War II, known as Santa Maria Army Air Field.
• The original Allan Hancock Field was established in 1927 at another location, between Jones Street to the north, Stowell Road to the south, Bradley Road to the east and Miller Street to the west.

Facts about Caen la Mer Airport (CFR):

• Caen la Mer Airport (CFR) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Caen la Mer Airport (CFR) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Caen la Mer Airport (meaning Caen la Mer Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,021 miles (19,345 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of Caen la Mer Airport's relatively low elevation of 256 feet, planes can take off or land at Caen la Mer 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 Caen la Mer Airport (CFR) is Deauville - Saint-Gatien Airport (DOL), which is located 30 miles (49 kilometers) ENE of CFR.
• In addition to being known as "Caen la Mer Airport", another name for CFR is "Aéroport de Caen la Mer".