Nonstop flight route between Shannon (County Clare), Ireland and Portland, Maine, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Shannon Airport (SNN), Shannon (County Clare), Ireland and Portland International Jetport (PWM), Portland, Maine, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,807 miles (or 4,517 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 Portland International Jetport, 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 Portland International Jetport. 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 1969, it was announced that a new government agency, Aer Rianta, would be given responsibility for Shannon Airport.
• 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 handled 1,400,032 passengers last year.
• During the 1990s, the airport began to struggle.
• 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".
• In 1966, Aer Lingus began service between Shannon and Chicago, with a stop in Montréal, Canada.
• Shannon began to rebound in the late 1990s with the success of the Irish economy, the improving situation in Northern Ireland, and an influx of American tourists.
• The closest airport to Shannon Airport (SNN) is Inisheer Aerodrome (INQ), which is located 35 miles (56 kilometers) NW of SNN.
• In the late 1930s, transatlantic air traffic was dominated by flying boats, and a flying boat terminal was located at Foynes on the south side of the Shannon Estuary.
• Shannon Airport (SNN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The last quarter of 2012 saw a resurgence for Shannon, with new services announced for Philadelphia and Chicago, a return of Aer Lingus to JFK and Boston, and Delta to JFK, giving Shannon direct services to five US airports for 2013.

Facts about Portland International Jetport (PWM):

• The furthest airport from Portland International Jetport (PWM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,705 miles (18,838 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In 2004 Runway 11/29 was lengthened to 7,200 feet.
• The closest airport to Portland International Jetport (PWM) is Naval Air Station Brunswick (NHZ), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) NE of PWM.
• Because of Portland International Jetport's relatively low elevation of 76 feet, planes can take off or land at Portland International Jetport 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.
• Portland International Jetport (PWM) has 2 runways.
• In 1982 PWM got its first nonstop beyond New York, when Delta tried a 727 to Cincinnati for a year or so.
• 1986 also brought US Airways, who began flights to Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
• Boston-Maine Airways had a monopoly on passenger air travel at Portland, which continued after the airline was renamed Northeast Airlines.
• After Independence Air went bankrupt Portland had no low-cost carrier, causing fares to go up, and passenger numbers to decline.