Nonstop flight route between Funchal, Madeira, Portugal and Sanford, Florida (near Orlando), United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Madeira Airport (FNC), Funchal, Madeira, Portugal and Orlando/Sanford International Airport (SFB), Sanford, Florida (near Orlando), United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,778 miles (or 6,081 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 Madeira Airport and Orlando/Sanford International 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 Madeira Airport and Orlando/Sanford International 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 Madeira Airport (FNC):

• The airport was once infamous for its short runway which, surrounded by high mountains and the ocean, made it a tricky landing for even the most experienced of pilots.
• In addition to being known as "Madeira Airport", another name for FNC is "Aeroporto da Madeira".
• The furthest airport from Madeira Airport (FNC) is Lord Howe Island Airport (LDH), which is nearly antipodal to Madeira Airport (meaning Madeira Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Lord Howe Island Airport), and is located 12,181 miles (19,604 kilometers) away in Lord Howe Island, New South Wales, Australia.
• Because of Madeira Airport's relatively low elevation of 190 feet, planes can take off or land at Madeira 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 2000, the runway was again extended this time to 2,781 m almost doubling the size of the original runway.
• Madeira Airport (FNC) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Madeira Airport (FNC) is Porto Santo Airport (PXO), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) NE of FNC.
• Madeira Airport handled 2,311,380 passengers last year.

Facts about Orlando/Sanford International Airport (SFB):

• Because of Orlando/Sanford International Airport's relatively low elevation of 55 feet, planes can take off or land at Orlando/Sanford International 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 1992 parts of the action film Passenger 57, starring Wesley Snipes, were filmed at the then-Orlando Sanford Regional Airport, where it represented a small airport in Louisiana.
• Additional name changes followed, to include Sanford Regional Airport, Central Florida Regional Airport, Orlando Sanford Regional Airport and the current Orlando Sanford International Airport.
• In 2010 Allegiant Air announced it was moving many flights to larger and more centrally located Orlando International Airport to compete with AirTran Airways.
• The furthest airport from Orlando/Sanford International Airport (SFB) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,507 miles (18,518 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• Orlando/Sanford International Airport (SFB) has 4 runways.
• The closest airport to Orlando/Sanford International Airport (SFB) is Orlando Executive Airport (ORL), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) SSW of SFB.