Nonstop flight route between Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia and Lajes, Azores, Portugal:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wagga Wagga Airport (WGA), Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia and Lajes Air Base (TER), Lajes, Azores, Portugal would travel a Great Circle distance of 12,047 miles (or 19,388 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 Wagga Wagga Airport and Lajes Air Base, 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 Wagga Wagga Airport and Lajes Air Base. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

The distance between WGA and TER makes them almost exactly antipodal (the exact opposite side of the world) to each other. Nonstop flights between Wagga Wagga Airport and Lajes Air Base would be very impractical for the airlines, because only a lightly loaded Boeing 777-200LR would be able to make the trip. Since airlines need to be able to take as many people and cargo as possible in order to make a profit, the odds of ever seeing a nonstop flight between WGA and TER are slim to none. However, you'll still be able to get from Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia and Lajes, Azores, Portugal by taking some connecting flights!

Did you know that one full circling of the Earth (measuring from the equator) is about 24,901.5 miles (or 40,075 kilometers), which means if you were 12,450 miles from any given point on the planet, the distance back to your starting point would be about the same -- in any direction! The same can be said for a nonstop flight between WGA and TER!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Wagga Wagga Airport (WGA):

• Wagga Wagga Airport handled 207,633 passengers last year.
• Because of Wagga Wagga Airport's relatively low elevation of 724 feet, planes can take off or land at Wagga Wagga 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.
• In September 2011, it was announced that Douglas Aerospace would be centralising its operations at the airport by April 2012, which will see the council's construction of two hangars speeded up.
• The closest airport to Wagga Wagga Airport (WGA) is Cootamundra Airport (CMD), which is located 49 miles (79 kilometers) NE of WGA.
• In addition to being known as "Wagga Wagga Airport", another name for WGA is "RAAF Base Wagga".
• The furthest airport from Wagga Wagga Airport (WGA) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is nearly antipodal to Wagga Wagga Airport (meaning Wagga Wagga Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Flores Airport), and is located 12,130 miles (19,522 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
• On 28 January 1992 the Wagga Wagga City Council secured a 30-year lease from the Commonwealth of Australia which included $2 million to upgrade the airport's runway which can handle a Boeing 737.
• On 27 May 2010, Anthony Albanese announced that the federal government would provided funding worth A$1.05 million, as part of the Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program, to the Wagga Wagga City Council for the installation of the A$1.63 million Instrument Landing System, which were only found in all of Australia's capital cities.
• Regional Express Airlines maintains its fleet of Saab 340 passenger and freight aircraft at Wagga Wagga Airport.
• Wagga Wagga Airport (WGA) has 2 runways.
• In April 2011, a joint tender for security upgrades for baggage and passenger screening was called for Wagga Wagga, Tamworth and Dubbo Airports, which is to be completed by July 2012.
• In December 2009, the airport had undergone a $2.2 million upgrade to increase its capacity for future growth and to improve the security at the airport.

Facts about Lajes Air Base (TER):

• 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 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 was one of the two stopover and refueling bases for the first transatlantic crossing of non-rigid airships in 1944.
• Civilian operators may use Terceira Airport/Lajes Air Base after requesting a landing permit according to the rules inscribed in the AIP for Portugal, issued by the Portuguese Directorate of Civilian Aviation.
• 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 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 closest airport to Lajes Air Base (TER) is Graciosa Airport (GRW), which is located 55 miles (89 kilometers) WNW of TER.
• In the summer of 1984, Lajes undertook a new mission known as "SILK PURSE." Boeing EC-135s began operating out of Lajes Field as an airborne command post for the U.S.
• Lajes Air Base (TER) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.