Nonstop flight route between Santa Maria, California, United States and Saint-Étienne / Bouthéon, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX), Santa Maria, California, United States and Saint-Étienne–Bouthéon Airport (EBU), Saint-Étienne / Bouthéon, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,898 miles (or 9,492 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 Saint-Étienne–Bouthéon 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 Saint-Étienne–Bouthéon 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.
• 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.
• A 4,000-square-foot baggage claim facility opened in 2007.
• 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 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.
• At one point during the early 1980's Swift Aire Lines, which was based at the nearby San Luis Obispo Airport, was the only airline flying nonstop between Santa Maria and Los Angeles, primarily with Fokker F27 Friendship turboprops which the carrier had purchased new from the manufacturer.
• In addition to being known as "Santa Maria Public Airport", another name for SMX is "Capt. G. Allan Hancock FieldSanta Maria Army Airfield".

Facts about Saint-Étienne–Bouthéon Airport (EBU):

• Saint-Étienne–Bouthéon Airport (EBU) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Saint-Étienne–Bouthéon Airport", another name for EBU is "Aéroport de Saint-Étienne – Bouthéon".
• The closest airport to Saint-Étienne–Bouthéon Airport (EBU) is Lyon–Bron Airport (LYN), which is located 34 miles (54 kilometers) ENE of EBU.
• The furthest airport from Saint-Étienne–Bouthéon Airport (EBU) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Saint-Étienne–Bouthéon Airport (meaning Saint-Étienne–Bouthéon Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,312 miles (19,814 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.