Nonstop flight route between Sheffield, England, United Kingdom and Lompoc, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Sheffield City Heliport (SZD), Sheffield, England, United Kingdom and Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG), Lompoc, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,347 miles (or 8,605 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 Sheffield City Heliport and Vandenberg Air Force 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 Sheffield City Heliport and Vandenberg Air Force Base. 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 Sheffield City Heliport (SZD):

• Before it opened, Sheffield was the largest city in Europe without its own airport although there was a proposal made in 1968 to build an airport on land near Todwick in Rotherham but came to nothing.
• Sheffield City Heliport (SZD) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Sheffield City Heliport (SZD) is Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield (DSA), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) ENE of SZD.
• The runway, as a part of the 80 acres, has been sold and will be developed into the Blue Skies Business Park.
• The furthest airport from Sheffield City Heliport (SZD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,799 miles (18,989 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• Planning permission has been granted to turn the entire site into a business park, however in December 2012, Sheffield City Council received details of a bid to reopen the airport.
• Because of Sheffield City Heliport's relatively low elevation of 231 feet, planes can take off or land at Sheffield City Heliport 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.
• An assessment commissioned by the City Council revealed it was losing £400,000 a year and was not sustainable.

Facts about Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG):

• General Vandenberg was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on 24 January 1899.
• In addition to being known as "Vandenberg Air Force Base", another name for VBG is "Vandenberg AFB".
• A maximum security army disciplinary barracks was constructed on post property in 1946.
• The furthest airport from Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,479 miles (18,473 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• With the establishment of a separate Air Force in September 1947, Vandenberg became its first vice chief of staff under General Carl Spaatz, and succeeded him on 30 April 1948.
• The closest airport to Vandenberg Air Force Base (VBG) is Lompoc Airport (LPC), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) SE of VBG.