Nonstop flight route between Santa Maria, California, United States and Nagoya, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX), Santa Maria, California, United States and Nagoya Airfield (NKM), Nagoya, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,486 miles (or 8,829 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 Nagoya Airfield, 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 Nagoya Airfield. 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):

• 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 first airline to serve Santa Maria was Southwest Airways operating Douglas DC-3 prop aircraft.
• 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.
• 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 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.

Facts about Nagoya Airfield (NKM):

• Because of these reasons, a new airport, Chubu Centrair International Airport, was built on an island south of Nagoya.
• The closest airport to Nagoya Airfield (NKM) is Chūbu Centrair International Airport (NGO), which is located 28 miles (45 kilometers) SSW of NKM.
• In addition to being known as "Nagoya Airfield", other names for NKM include "名古屋飛行場" and "Nagoya Hikōjō".
• The furthest airport from Nagoya Airfield (NKM) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is located 11,870 miles (19,103 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• Because of Nagoya Airfield's relatively low elevation of 46 feet, planes can take off or land at Nagoya Airfield 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.
• Nagoya Airfield (NKM) currently has only 1 runway.
• After the Armistice in South Korea which ended combat, the 49th Fighter Group moved to Nagoya Air Base with F-84 Thunderjets.