Nonstop flight route between London, England, United Kingdom and San Francisco, California, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from LHR to SFO:
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- About this route
- LHR Airport Information
- SFO Airport Information
- Facts about LHR
- Facts about SFO
- Map of Nearest Airports to LHR
- List of Nearest Airports to LHR
- Map of Furthest Airports from LHR
- List of Furthest Airports from LHR
- Map of Nearest Airports to SFO
- List of Nearest Airports to SFO
- Map of Furthest Airports from SFO
- List of Furthest Airports from SFO
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between London Heathrow Airport (LHR), London, England, United Kingdom and San Francisco International Airport (SFO), San Francisco, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,353 miles (or 8,615 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 London Heathrow Airport and San Francisco 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 London Heathrow Airport and San Francisco International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | LHR / EGLL |
Airport Name: | London Heathrow Airport |
Location: | London, England, United Kingdom |
GPS Coordinates: | 51°28'38"N by 0°27'41"W |
Area Served: | London, United Kingdom |
Operator/Owner: | Heathrow Airport Holdings |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 83 feet (25 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from LHR |
More Information: | LHR Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SFO / KSFO |
Airport Name: | San Francisco International Airport |
Location: | San Francisco, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 37°37'8"N by 122°22'30"W |
Area Served: | San Francisco |
Operator/Owner: | City & County of San Francisco |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 13 feet (4 meters) |
# of Runways: | 4 |
View all routes: | Routes from SFO |
More Information: | SFO Maps & Info |
Facts about London Heathrow Airport (LHR):
- The airport is owned and operated by Heathrow Airport Holdings, which also owns and operates three other UK airports, and is itself owned by FGP TopCo Limited, an international consortium led by the Spanish Ferrovial Group that includes Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and Government of Singapore Investment Corporation.
- With only two runways, operating at over 98% of their capacity, Heathrow has little room for more flights, although the increasing use of larger aircraft such as the Airbus A380 will allow some increase in passenger numbers.
- The furthest airport from London Heathrow Airport (LHR) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,875 miles (19,112 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- London Heathrow Airport (LHR) has 2 runways.
- Because of London Heathrow Airport's relatively low elevation of 83 feet, planes can take off or land at London Heathrow 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.
- Of Heathrow's 69 million passengers in 2011, 7% were bound for UK destinations, 41% were short-haul international travellers and 52% were long-haul.
- The closest airport to London Heathrow Airport (LHR) is RAF Northolt (NHT), which is located only 6 miles (9 kilometers) NNE of LHR.
- Heathrow Airport is used by over 90 airlines flying to 170 destinations worldwide.
- The original 1950s red-brick control tower was demolished in early 2013 to enable access roads for the new Terminal 2 to be laid.
- Heathrow Airport started in 1929 as a small airfield on land south-east of the hamlet of Heathrow from which the airport takes its name.
Facts about San Francisco International Airport (SFO):
- In 1989 a master plan and Environmental Impact Report were prepared to guide development over the next two decades.
- San Francisco International Airport handled 44,477,209 passengers last year.
- The closest airport to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is Half Moon Bay AirportHalf Moon Bay Flight Strip (HAF), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) SW of SFO.
- On July 14, 2008, SFO was voted Best International Airport in North America for 2008 in the World Airports Survey by Skytrax.
- Because of San Francisco International Airport's relatively low elevation of 13 feet, planes can take off or land at San Francisco 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.
- On May 12, 2008, a $383 million renovation project was announced that included a new control tower, the use of green materials, and a seismic retrofit.
- SFO was one of several US airports which operated the Registered Traveler program from April 2007 until funding ended in June 2009, which had allowed travelers to pass through security checkpoints quickly.
- San Francisco International Airport (SFO) has 4 runways.
- The furthest airport from San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is Tôlanaro Airport (FTU), which is located 11,365 miles (18,290 kilometers) away in Tôlanaro, Madagascar.