Nonstop flight route between Santa Maria, California, United States and Marcoola, Queensland, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX), Santa Maria, California, United States and Sunshine-Coast-Airport (MCY), Marcoola, Queensland, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,059 miles (or 11,361 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 Sunshine-Coast-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 Sunshine-Coast-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.
• Other enhancements include a new passenger terminal holding room that opened February 2008.
• In addition to being known as "Santa Maria Public Airport", another name for SMX is "Capt. G. Allan Hancock FieldSanta Maria Army Airfield".
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• After the war Santa Barbara County and the city of Santa Maria acquired the land and facilities through two grants in 1948.

Facts about Sunshine-Coast-Airport (MCY):

• The closest airport to Sunshine-Coast-Airport (MCY) is Caloundra Airport (CUD), which is located only 14 miles (22 kilometers) S of MCY.
• As of April 2014, the only scheduled domestic routes are to southern state capitals, Sydney and Melbourne, Australia.
• The airport has one terminal.
• The terminal is modern and of high-quality for a regional airport.
• The airport has two runways.
• Sunshine-Coast-Airport (MCY) has 2 runways.
• Because of Sunshine-Coast-Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Sunshine-Coast-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 Queensland Government granted a parcel of land to the Maroochy Shire Council in 1958 for use as a general aviation airstrip.
• On 3 June 2010, the airport changed its name from 'Maroochydore-Sunshine Coast Airport' to Sunshine Coast Airport and changed its ICAO code from YBMC to YBSU.
• The furthest airport from Sunshine-Coast-Airport (MCY) is La Palma Airport (SPC), which is located 11,859 miles (19,086 kilometers) away in La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain.