Nonstop flight route between St. Louis, Missouri, United States and Île Sainte-Marie, Madagascar:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lambert–St. Louis International Airport (STL), St. Louis, Missouri, United States and Sainte Marie Airport (SMS), Île Sainte-Marie, Madagascar would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,615 miles (or 15,474 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 Lambert–St. Louis International Airport and Sainte Marie 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 Lambert–St. Louis International Airport and Sainte Marie 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 Lambert–St. Louis International Airport (STL):

• In the late 1920s, Lambert Field became the first airport with an air traffic control system—albeit one that communicated with pilots via waving flags.
• After the war, NAS St.
• The closest airport to Lambert–St. Louis International Airport (STL) is St. Louis Downtown Airport (CPS), which is located only 16 miles (27 kilometers) SE of STL.
• Ozark Airlines established its only hub at Lambert in the late 1950s.
• American Airlines is now the airport's second-busiest operating airline.
• Lambert–St. Louis International Airport (STL) has 4 runways.
• The furthest airport from Lambert–St. Louis International Airport (STL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,986 miles (17,681 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of Lambert–St. Louis International Airport's relatively low elevation of 605 feet, planes can take off or land at Lambert–St. Louis International 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.
• Despite the entry of Southwest Airlines in the market, the TWA buyout of Ozark and subsequent increase in the number of nonstop cities served, the total number of passengers using Lambert held steady from 1985 through 1993, ranging between 19 million and 20 million passengers per year throughout the period.
• By September 2002, Lambert's passenger traffic had declined by 16.9% from before the terrorist attacks a year earlier, which was the 8th biggest percentage drop of the major US airports.

Facts about Sainte Marie Airport (SMS):

• Sainte Marie Airport (SMS) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Sainte Marie Airport's relatively low elevation of 7 feet, planes can take off or land at Sainte Marie 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 furthest airport from Sainte Marie Airport (SMS) is Guerrero Negro Airport (GUB), which is located 11,161 miles (17,962 kilometers) away in Guerrero Negro, Baja California Sur, Mexico.
• The closest airport to Sainte Marie Airport (SMS) is Toamasino Airport (TMM), which is located 76 miles (122 kilometers) SSW of SMS.