Nonstop flight route between Shannon (County Clare), Ireland and Bedford, Massachusetts, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shannon Airport (SNN), Shannon (County Clare), Ireland and Laurence G. Hanscom Field (BED), Bedford, Massachusetts, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,894 miles (or 4,658 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 Shannon Airport and Laurence G. Hanscom Field, 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 Shannon Airport and Laurence G. Hanscom Field. 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 Shannon Airport (SNN):

• In 1947, the "Customs Free Airport Act" established Shannon as the world's first duty-free airport.
• Because of Shannon Airport's relatively low elevation of 46 feet, planes can take off or land at Shannon 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.
• Ryanair increased services and passenger numbers at the airport through 2008.
• Shannon Airport (SNN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The number of international carriers rose sharply in succeeding years as Shannon became well known as the gateway between Europe and the Americas.
• The furthest airport from Shannon Airport (SNN) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is nearly antipodal to Shannon Airport (meaning Shannon Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ryan's Creek Aerodrome), and is located 12,015 miles (19,336 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Shannon Airport (SNN) is Inisheer Aerodrome (INQ), which is located 35 miles (56 kilometers) NW of SNN.
• In December 2012, it was announced that Shannon Airport would separate from the Dublin Airport Authority, who still own Dublin and Cork airports.
• Shannon Airport handled 1,400,032 passengers last year.
• In addition to being known as "Shannon Airport", another name for SNN is "Aerfort na Sionainne".
• During the 1990s, the airport began to struggle.
• The first Air Services Agreement with the United States in 1945 only permitted flights to Shannon, and only permitted Irish airlines to serve Boston, Chicago, and New York.

Facts about Laurence G. Hanscom Field (BED):

• Laurence G. Hanscom Field (BED) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Laurence G. Hanscom Field (BED) is Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) ESE of BED.
• In addition to being known as "Laurence G. Hanscom Field", another name for BED is "Hanscom Air Force Base".
• From 1999 until 2003, Shuttle America, a Connecticut-based regional airline operating for US Airways Express, operated scheduled service from the airfield, carrying more than 10,000 passengers each month to airports in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania using De Havilland Dash 8 and Saab 340 aircraft.
• In 2008, and many years prior, Hanscom has handled the second most aircraft movements of any airport in New England.
• Because of Laurence G. Hanscom Field's relatively low elevation of 132 feet, planes can take off or land at Laurence G. Hanscom Field 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.
• In April 1975, President Gerald Ford used Hanscom Field before and after making speeches in Lexington, Massachusetts and Concord, Massachusetts to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord.
• The furthest airport from Laurence G. Hanscom Field (BED) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,753 miles (18,914 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Hanscom is a critical part of the air transportation infrastructure for Massachusetts and the rest of New England.
• Hanscom can be reached by car by following Route 2A west from exit 30B on I-95/Route 128.