Nonstop flight route between San Tomé, Venezuela and Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from SOM to LAE:
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- About this route
- SOM Airport Information
- LAE Airport Information
- Facts about SOM
- Facts about LAE
- Map of Nearest Airports to SOM
- List of Nearest Airports to SOM
- Map of Furthest Airports from SOM
- List of Furthest Airports from SOM
- Map of Nearest Airports to LAE
- List of Nearest Airports to LAE
- Map of Furthest Airports from LAE
- List of Furthest Airports from LAE
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between San Tomé Airport (SOM), San Tomé, Venezuela and Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE), Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,317 miles (or 16,604 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 San Tomé Airport and Lae Nadzab 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 San Tomé Airport and Lae Nadzab Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SOM / SVST |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | San Tomé, Venezuela |
GPS Coordinates: | 8°56'43"N by 64°9'3"W |
Area Served: | El Tigre, Venezuela |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 837 feet (255 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SOM |
More Information: | SOM Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | LAE / AYNZ |
Airport Name: | Lae Nadzab Airport |
Location: | Lae, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea |
GPS Coordinates: | 6°34'10"S by 146°43'33"E |
Operator/Owner: | Papua New Guinea Office of Civil Aviation |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 239 feet (73 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from LAE |
More Information: | LAE Maps & Info |
Facts about San Tomé Airport (SOM):
- San Tomé Airport (SOM) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to San Tomé Airport (SOM) is El Tigre Airport (ELX), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) SSW of SOM.
- Because of San Tomé Airport's relatively low elevation of 837 feet, planes can take off or land at San Tomé 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 "San Tomé Airport", another name for SOM is "Aeropuerto Don Edmundo Barrios".
- The furthest airport from San Tomé Airport (SOM) is Selaparang Airport (AMI), which is nearly antipodal to San Tomé Airport (meaning San Tomé Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Selaparang Airport), and is located 12,405 miles (19,964 kilometers) away in Mataram, Indonesia.
Facts about Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE):
- Lae airfield continued to be used by Air Niugini and other third-level airlines until 1987.
- The furthest airport from Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) is Governador Carlos Wilson Airport (FEN), which is located 11,714 miles (18,852 kilometers) away in Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco, Brazil.
- Because of Lae Nadzab Airport's relatively low elevation of 239 feet, planes can take off or land at Lae Nadzab 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 first parachute jump for the 503rd Parachute Regiment was during the Allied paratrooper assault on 5 September 1943.
- Two parallel runways were built, running roughly east to west.
- Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) currently has only 1 runway.
- The closest airport to Lae Nadzab Airport (LAE) is Bulolo Airport (BUL), which is located 45 miles (72 kilometers) S of LAE.
- In March 1942, the Japanese occupied Lae and Salamaua.