Nonstop flight route between Lajes, Azores, Portugal and Staunton / Waynesboro / Harrisonburg, Virginia, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lajes Air Base (TER), Lajes, Azores, Portugal and Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport (SHD), Staunton / Waynesboro / Harrisonburg, Virginia, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,762 miles (or 4,445 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 Shenandoah Valley Regional 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 Shenandoah Valley Regional 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):

• Today, Lajes continues to support transiting aircraft.
• 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".
• 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.
• Another important Cold War operation at Lajes was the U.S.
• 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 resident Portuguese 711 Squadron "Albatrozes" was deactivated on 30 November 2006.
• 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.
• Lajes Air Base (TER) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport (SHD):

• The furthest airport from Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport (SHD) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,601 miles (18,670 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In June 2013, Shenandoah Regional Airport received criticism when an inmate of the Virginia Department of Corrections escaped from a work program based there.
• Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport (SHD) currently has only 1 runway.
• Silver Airways operating as United Express operates Saab 340B turboprop aircraft from the airport.
• The closest airport to Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport (SHD) is Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport (CHO), which is located 26 miles (41 kilometers) ESE of SHD.