Nonstop flight route between Shannon (County Clare), Ireland and between Baltimore, Maryland and Washington, D.C., United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shannon Airport (SNN), Shannon (County Clare), Ireland and Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI), between Baltimore, Maryland and Washington, D.C., United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,256 miles (or 5,240 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 Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall 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 Shannon Airport and Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall 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 Shannon Airport (SNN):

• In 1947, the "Customs Free Airport Act" established Shannon as the world's first duty-free airport.
• In November 2012, Aer Lingus also confirmed a new three-times-weekly service to Faro, Portugal, operating from May to September with an Airbus A320, strengthening Shannon's summer-sun destinations.
• In 1958, the Irish airline Aer Lingus began transatlantic service to the United States, using Lockheed Super Constellations for thrice-weekly service to New York City and Boston.
• Shannon Airport (SNN) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• Shannon Airport is one of Ireland's three primary airports, along with Dublin and Cork.
• In 2011, passenger numbers at Shannon declined by 7.4% from 1,755,885, to 1,625,549.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Shannon Airport", another name for SNN is "Aerfort na Sionainne".
• Shannon Airport handled 1,400,032 passengers last year.
• 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.
• The closest airport to Shannon Airport (SNN) is Inisheer Aerodrome (INQ), which is located 35 miles (56 kilometers) NW of SNN.
• Shannon holds an important place in Ireland's aviation history as it was the first transatlantic gateway between Ireland and the US, and the birthplace of Duty-free shopping and of aviation leasing.

Facts about Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI):

• The airport's cargo concourse covers a 395,000 sq ft area.
• BWI is a focus city for Southwest Airlines, and is the busiest airport in the Baltimore–Washington Metropolitan Area.
• The closest airport to Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) is Tipton Airport (FME), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) SW of BWI.
• Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport handled 22,391,785 passengers last year.
• Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) has 4 runways.
• The Federal Aviation Administration is currently in the process of designing a new air traffic control tower that will replace the current tower.
• Because of Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport's relatively low elevation of 146 feet, planes can take off or land at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall 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.
• To accommodate Southwest's extensive presence at the airport, in 2005 Concourses A and B were expanded, renovated, and integrated with one another to house all of that airline's operations there.
• The furthest airport from Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,691 miles (18,814 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• On July 12, 2013, BWI Airport and the Maryland Aviation Administration launched a 3-year $125 million construction project.