Nonstop flight route between Santa Maria, California, United States and Lausanne, Switzerland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX), Santa Maria, California, United States and Lausanne Airport (QLS), Lausanne, Switzerland would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,920 miles (or 9,528 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 Lausanne 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 Lausanne 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):

• 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 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).
• Allegiant Air has expanded flights between Las Vegas and Santa Maria with four nonstops per week each way.
• In addition to being known as "Santa Maria Public Airport", another name for SMX is "Capt. G. Allan Hancock FieldSanta Maria Army Airfield".
• A runway extension opened on May 3, 2012, from 6,304 ft.
• 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 airport was built by the United States Army during World War II, known as Santa Maria Army Air Field.
• Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) has 2 runways.
• 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.
• The first airline to serve Santa Maria was Southwest Airways operating Douglas DC-3 prop aircraft.

Facts about Lausanne Airport (QLS):

• The furthest airport from Lausanne Airport (QLS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Lausanne Airport (meaning Lausanne Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,196 miles (19,627 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Lausanne Airport (QLS) currently has only 1 runway.
• In May 2000 the grass runway was replaced by a paved one.
• In addition to being known as "Lausanne Airport", another name for QLS is "Aéroport de Lausanne-Blécherette".
• The closest airport to Lausanne Airport (QLS) is Annemasse Aerodrome (QNJ), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) SW of QLS.