Nonstop flight route between Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, Kingdom of the Netherlands and Jakar, Bumthang, Bhutan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM), Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, Kingdom of the Netherlands and Bathpalathang Airport (BUT), Jakar, Bumthang, Bhutan would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,832 miles (or 14,214 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 Princess Juliana International Airport and Bathpalathang 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 Princess Juliana International Airport and Bathpalathang 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 Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM):

• Because of Princess Juliana International Airport's relatively low elevation of 14 feet, planes can take off or land at Princess Juliana 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.
• If traffic develops as forecast, Phase III of the masterplan will be executed, consisting of an extension of the new terminal building and the construction of a full parallel taxiway system.
• To accommodate the growing international and local traffic of private aircraft, PJIA has a Fixed Base Operator building, offering office space and private lounges with dedicated customs.
• The furthest airport from Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) is Karratha Airport (KTA), which is nearly antipodal to Princess Juliana International Airport (meaning Princess Juliana International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Karratha Airport), and is located 12,252 miles (19,718 kilometers) away in Karratha / Dampier, Western Australia, Australia.
• Since official opening of the new control tower, PJIA air traffic controllers have two radar systems at their disposal with ranges of 50 nautical miles and 250 nautical miles.
• Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because the approach to Runway 10 is over water, pilots can become disoriented regarding their perceived altitude when operating under visual flight rules.
• The closest airport to Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) is L'Espérance Airport Grand Case Airport (CCE), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) NE of SXM.

Facts about Bathpalathang Airport (BUT):

• The furthest airport from Bathpalathang Airport (BUT) is La Florida Airport (LSC), which is located 11,332 miles (18,237 kilometers) away in La Serena, Chile.
• Both Drukair and Tashi Air conducted inaugural flights to Bathpalathang on 17 December 2011—coinciding with the national day of Bhutan.
• Because of Bathpalathang Airport's high elevation of 8,858 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at BUT. Combined with a high temperature, this could make BUT a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The closest airport to Bathpalathang Airport (BUT) is Paro International Airport (PBH), which is located 82 miles (132 kilometers) W of BUT.
• Bathpalathang Airport (BUT) currently has only 1 runway.