Nonstop flight route between Santa Maria, California, United States and Mataiva, French Polynesia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX), Santa Maria, California, United States and Mataiva Airport (MVT), Mataiva, French Polynesia would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,906 miles (or 6,286 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 Mataiva 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 Mataiva 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):

• 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.
• Allegiant Air has expanded flights between Las Vegas and Santa Maria with four nonstops per week each way.
• The extended primary runway at Santa Maria is paved to 8,004 feet, giving the airport the longest civil runway between Los Angeles and San Francisco on the central coast and Vandenberg AFB's runway are longer).
• The airport was built by the United States Army during World War II, known as Santa Maria Army Air Field.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Mataiva Airport (MVT):

• Because of Mataiva Airport's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Mataiva 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 furthest airport from Mataiva Airport (MVT) is Khartoum International Airport (KRT), which is nearly antipodal to Mataiva Airport (meaning Mataiva Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Khartoum International Airport), and is located 12,339 miles (19,858 kilometers) away in Khartoum, Sudan.
• The closest airport to Mataiva Airport (MVT) is Arutua Airport (AXR), which is located 142 miles (228 kilometers) E of MVT.