Nonstop flight route between Lajes, Azores, Portugal and Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lajes Air Base (TER), Lajes, Azores, Portugal and Lehigh Valley International Airport (ABE), Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,541 miles (or 4,089 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 Lajes Air Base and Lehigh Valley International 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 Lajes Air Base and Lehigh Valley International 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 Lajes Air Base (TER):

• Lajes Air Base (TER) currently has only 1 runway.
• In 1947, the Portuguese Esquadra 41 started to operate from Lajes, equipped with Boeing SB-17, Grumman HU-16 Albatross, Douglas C-54 Skymaster and, later Sikorsky H-19.
• The closest airport to Lajes Air Base (TER) is Graciosa Airport (GRW), which is located 55 miles (89 kilometers) WNW of TER.
• The furthest airport from Lajes Air Base (TER) is Merimbula Airport (MIM), which is nearly antipodal to Lajes Air Base (meaning Lajes Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Merimbula Airport), and is located 12,229 miles (19,680 kilometers) away in Merimbula, New South Wales, Australia.
• The civilian terminal also plays an important role in support of passenger and cargo airliners, executive, corporate and private jets flying to the island or beyond as the central location in the Azores group of islands makes it an ideal spot for refuelling or stopover.
• Because of Lajes Air Base's relatively low elevation of 180 feet, planes can take off or land at Lajes Air Base 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 NATO and non-NATO fighter and transport planes which continue to use Lajes on a regular basis, the US DoD movements are now at an all time low.
• In addition to being known as "Lajes Air Base", other names for TER include "Base Aérea das Lajes", "Base Aérea Nº 4" and "Aeroporto das Lajes".
• In 1980, an earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale struck Terceira Island.
• In 2009 Lajes provided rescue support of shipping lanes across the Atlantic, a safe haven for medical or mechanical emergency situations in aircraft crossing the Atlantic, and support for the USAF's continuing campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Facts about Lehigh Valley International Airport (ABE):

• By January 1944 work on a new runway was completed and a Class A United States Weather Bureau station had been installed.
• Lehigh Valley International Airport (ABE) has 2 runways.
• Because of Lehigh Valley International Airport's relatively low elevation of 393 feet, planes can take off or land at Lehigh Valley 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.
• Allentown PA Airport in the early 1930s before the addition of hard-surfaced runways.
• On June 27, 2009, Allegiant Air Flight 746, a McDonnell Douglas MD-80 aircraft made an emergency landing after flames were observed coming from the aircraft's left engine.
• The airport has had competition from Philadelphia International Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport, which have more flights and sometimes lower fares.
• The closest airport to Lehigh Valley International Airport (ABE) is Quakertown Airport (UKT), which is located only 15 miles (25 kilometers) SSE of ABE.
• The airport before terminal expansion.
• The furthest airport from Lehigh Valley International Airport (ABE) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,695 miles (18,821 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• On September 19, 2008, Mesa Airlines Flight 7138, Bombardier CRJ700, was forced to make a high-speed aborted take off and swerve in order to avoid a collision with a Cessna 172 that had yet to exit the runway after landing.