Nonstop flight route between Lajes, Azores, Portugal and Mercury, Nevada, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Lajes Air Base (TER), Lajes, Azores, Portugal and Yucca Airstrip (UCC), Mercury, Nevada, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,642 miles (or 7,471 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 Yucca Airstrip, 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 Yucca Airstrip. 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 origin of the Lajes Field dates back to 1928, when Portuguese Army Lieutenant colonel Eduardo Gomes da Silva wrote a report on the possible construction of an airfield in the plainland of Lajes, for that branch's aviation service.
• 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.
• 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.
• By 1943, the British and American armed forces were allowed basing rights in Portugal, and the Royal Air Force took over Lajes Field as RAF Station Lajes.
• 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 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.
• 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 Field also played a crucial role in Cold War politics.
• 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.

Facts about Yucca Airstrip (UCC):

• Yucca Airstrip is a private-use airport located 17 miles north of the central business district of Mercury, in Nye County, Nevada, United States.
• Yucca Airstrip (UCC) has 2 runways.
• The airport was the staging area for SHOT BADGER, a test of the UPSHOT-KNOTHOLE Series of nuclear test shots on April 18, 1953.
• The furthest airport from Yucca Airstrip (UCC) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,249 miles (18,103 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• In addition to being known as "Yucca Airstrip", another name for UCC is "NV11".
• The closest airport to Yucca Airstrip (UCC) is Desert Rock Airport (DRA), which is located 23 miles (36 kilometers) S of UCC.