Nonstop flight route between Lajes, Azores, Portugal and Imperial, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lajes Air Base (TER), Lajes, Azores, Portugal and Imperial County Airport (IPL), Imperial, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,774 miles (or 7,683 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 Imperial County 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 Imperial County 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):

• The United States and the United Kingdom transferred control of Lajes to Portugal in 1946.
• During the Portuguese Colonial War, from 1961 to 1975, the Air Force Hospital at Lajes operated as the main centre for treatment and rehabilitation of mutilated and heavy burned soldiers of the three services of the Portuguese Armed Forces.
• Lajes Field also played a crucial role in Cold War politics.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• In August 2006, Portuguese news agencies reported that both governments were in discussions for a new agreement that could allow the use of Lajes for the training of a permanent F-22 Raptor squadron.
• 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".
• Lajes Air Base (TER) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Lajes Air Base (TER) is Graciosa Airport (GRW), which is located 55 miles (89 kilometers) WNW of TER.

Facts about Imperial County Airport (IPL):

• As per the Federal Aviation Administration, this airport had 7,061 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 5,641 in 2009, and 4,752 in 2010.
• Imperial County Airport (IPL) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Imperial County Airport (IPL) is Naval Air Facility El Centro (NJK), which is located only 5 miles (9 kilometers) W of IPL.
• Imperial County Airport covers an area of 370 acres at an elevation of 54 feet below mean sea level.
• The furthest airport from Imperial County Airport (IPL) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,531 miles (18,557 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• In addition to being known as "Imperial County Airport", another name for IPL is "Boley Field".
• Because of Imperial County Airport's relatively low elevation of -54 feet, planes can take off or land at Imperial County 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.