Nonstop flight route between Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, Kingdom of the Netherlands and León, Spain:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM), Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, Kingdom of the Netherlands and León Airport (LEN), León, Spain would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,739 miles (or 6,017 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 León 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 León 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):

• Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• Because of increased passenger traffic and the expected growth of passenger traffic in the near future, Princess Juliana International Airport is being heavily modernized following a three-phased masterplan, commissioned in 1997.
• Although the airport is as close to the beach as it is, there have only been 2 major accidents.
• Because the approach to Runway 10 is over water, pilots can become disoriented regarding their perceived altitude when operating under visual flight rules.
• Arriving aircraft approach the island on the last section of the final approach for Runway 10, following a 3° glide slope flying low over the famous Maho Beach.
• The new four-story terminal building offers 27,000 square metres of floor space and is fully air-conditioned.
• 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.
• 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 León Airport (LEN):

• León Airport handled 30,890 passengers last year.
• León Airport (LEN) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from León Airport (LEN) is Kaikoura Aerodrome (KBZ), which is nearly antipodal to León Airport (meaning León Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Kaikoura Aerodrome), and is located 12,397 miles (19,952 kilometers) away in Kaikoura, New Zealand.
• In 2003 a new Rescue and Fire Fighting Services Building was built, with its corresponding developed and landscaped area, as well as a technical block and an elevated water tank.
• During the Spanish Civil War, the Leon aerodrome was the headquarters of numerous airborne units and at the end of the conflict it was listed as class A.
• In addition to being known as "León Airport", another name for LEN is "Aeropuerto de León".
• The closest airport to León Airport (LEN) is Asturias Airport (OVD), which is located 70 miles (113 kilometers) NNW of LEN.