Nonstop flight route between Portland, Maine, United States and Beijing, People's Republic of China:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Portland International Jetport (PWM), Portland, Maine, United States and Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK), Beijing, People's Republic of China would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,636 miles (or 10,679 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 Portland International Jetport and Beijing Capital 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 Portland International Jetport and Beijing Capital 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 Portland International Jetport (PWM):

• In 1981 Air New England ceased operations and pulled out of the Jetport after 11 years.
• The furthest airport from Portland International Jetport (PWM) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,705 miles (18,838 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of Portland International Jetport's relatively low elevation of 76 feet, planes can take off or land at Portland International Jetport 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 closest airport to Portland International Jetport (PWM) is Naval Air Station Brunswick (NHZ), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) NE of PWM.
• In 1995 a terminal building improvement project was undertaken to add two-second-level boarding gates, as well as additional space for ticketing, operations, departure lounge, concessions, and an international customs facility.
• Portland International Jetport is a public airport two miles west of downtown Portland, in Cumberland County, Maine.
• Some service began to return as the industry's economics improved in 2005 and 2006.
• Portland International Jetport (PWM) has 2 runways.
• In 1982 PWM got its first nonstop beyond New York, when Delta tried a 727 to Cincinnati for a year or so.

Facts about Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK):

• Beijing Capital International Airport handled 83,712,355 passengers last year.
• Terminal 3 was designed by a consortium of NACO, UK Architect Foster and Partners and ARUP.
• The furthest airport from Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) is Gobernador Edgardo Castello Airport (VDM), which is nearly antipodal to Beijing Capital International Airport (meaning Beijing Capital International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Gobernador Edgardo Castello Airport), and is located 12,378 miles (19,920 kilometers) away in Viedma, Argentina.
• A 98.3 m monitoring tower stands at the southern end of T3, the highest building at the airport.
• The luggage system can handle 19,200 pieces of luggage per hour.
• The closest airport to Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) is Beijing Nanyuan Airport (NAY), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) SSW of PEK.
• Beijing Airport was opened on 2 March 1958.
• In addition to being known as "Beijing Capital International Airport", other names for PEK include "北京首都国际机场" and "Běijīng Shǒudū Guójì Jīchǎng".
• Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) has 3 runways.
• The terminal has gates and a nearby runway that can handle the Airbus A380, which were proven when Singapore Airlines briefly offered A380 flights to Beijing in August 2008 during the Summer Olympics.
• Because of Beijing Capital International Airport's relatively low elevation of 116 feet, planes can take off or land at Beijing Capital 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 late 1999, to mark the 50th anniversary of the founding of the PRC, the airport was expanded again.