Nonstop flight route between São Nicolau, Cape Verde and Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Preguiça Airport (SNE), São Nicolau, Cape Verde and RAF Lakenheath (LKZ), Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,820 miles (or 4,539 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 Preguiça Airport and RAF Lakenheath, 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 Preguiça Airport and RAF Lakenheath. 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 Preguiça Airport (SNE):

• The furthest airport from Preguiça Airport (SNE) is Misima Airport (MIS), which is located 11,986 miles (19,289 kilometers) away in Misima Island, Papua New Guinea.
• Preguiça Airport (SNE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Preguiça Airport (SNE) is Cesária Évora International Airport (VXE), which is located 54 miles (87 kilometers) WNW of SNE.
• Because of Preguiça Airport's relatively low elevation of 669 feet, planes can take off or land at Preguiça 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.

Facts about RAF Lakenheath (LKZ):

• The work entailed removal of the existing runways and laying new ones comprising 12 inches of high-grade concrete.
• The 48th Fighter Wing at RAF Lakenheath is the Statue of Liberty Wing, the only USAF wing with both a number and a name.
• The closest airport to RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is RAF Mildenhall (MHZ), which is located only 4 miles (7 kilometers) SW of LKZ.
• In early 1943, three T-2 hangars were erected on the north side of the airfield for glider storage, 40 Horsa Gliders being dispersed at Lakenheath during that year.
• The increasing tension of the Cold War lead to a re-evaluation of these deployments, and by 1953 SAC bombers began to move its heavy bomb groups further west, behind RAF fighter forces, to RAF Brize Norton, RAF Greenham Common, RAF Upper Heyford and RAF Fairford, while its shorter-range B-47 were sent to East Anglia.
• In April 1947, RAF Bomber Command returned to Lakenheath and had the runways repaired, resurfaced, and readied for operations by May 1948.
• The furthest airport from RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,827 miles (19,034 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.