Nonstop flight route between Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada and Santa Maria, California, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from YQU to SMX:
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- About this route
- YQU Airport Information
- SMX Airport Information
- Facts about YQU
- Facts about SMX
- Map of Nearest Airports to YQU
- List of Nearest Airports to YQU
- Map of Furthest Airports from YQU
- List of Furthest Airports from YQU
- Map of Nearest Airports to SMX
- List of Nearest Airports to SMX
- Map of Furthest Airports from SMX
- List of Furthest Airports from SMX
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Grande Prairie Airport (YQU), Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada and Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX), Santa Maria, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 1,403 miles (or 2,258 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 relatively short distance between Grande Prairie Airport and Santa Maria Public Airport, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | YQU / CYQU |
| Airport Name: | Grande Prairie Airport |
| Location: | Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada |
| GPS Coordinates: | 55°10'47"N by 118°53'4"W |
| Operator/Owner: | Grande Prairie Airport Commission |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 2195 feet (669 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from YQU |
| More Information: | YQU Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SMX / KSMX |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Santa Maria, California, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 34°53'56"N by 120°27'26"W |
| Area Served: | Santa Maria, California |
| Operator/Owner: | Santa Maria Public Airport District |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 261 feet (80 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from SMX |
| More Information: | SMX Maps & Info |
Facts about Grande Prairie Airport (YQU):
- The furthest airport from Grande Prairie Airport (YQU) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 10,233 miles (16,469 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.
- The closest airport to Grande Prairie Airport (YQU) is Dawson Creek Airport (YDQ), which is located 64 miles (103 kilometers) NW of YQU.
- Grande Prairie Airport (YQU) has 2 runways.
Facts about Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX):
- The closest airport to Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) is Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) SSW of SMX.
- Other enhancements include a new passenger terminal holding room that opened February 2008.
- During its use by the military Santa Maria AAF also controlled Estrella Army Airfield, near Paso Robles as an auxiliary airfield to support the pilot training activity.
- In addition to being known as "Santa Maria Public Airport", another name for SMX is "Capt. G. Allan Hancock FieldSanta Maria Army Airfield".
- Because of Santa Maria Public Airport's relatively low elevation of 261 feet, planes can take off or land at Santa Maria Public 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.
- The furthest airport from Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,466 miles (18,453 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
- A 4,000-square-foot baggage claim facility opened in 2007.
- At one point during the early 1980's Swift Aire Lines, which was based at the nearby San Luis Obispo Airport, was the only airline flying nonstop between Santa Maria and Los Angeles, primarily with Fokker F27 Friendship turboprops which the carrier had purchased new from the manufacturer.
- Santa Maria Public Airport (SMX) has 2 runways.
