New Delhi: Air travel connects the world. Countries that used to be far apart are just a few hours away by plane. Some flights offer meals and movie options, while others are too short for that. In this article, we have created a list of the shortest flights in the world. All the shortest flights in the world are under 100 kilometres long. This distance is called the Great Circle Distance (GCD). GCD measures a flight’s length while considering that the Earth is round.
List of Shortest Flight Routes
- Westray to Papa Westray – 2.7 km
- Kegata to Apowo – 2.4 km
- Caye Caulker to Caye Chapel – 4 km
- Connemara to Inis Mór – 16 km
- Sint Maarten to Anguilla – 19 km
- Karpathos to Kasos – 20 km
- Sint Maarten to Saba – 44 km
Westray to Papa Westray – 2.7 km
The shortest commercial flight in the world is Loganair’s flight from Westray to Papa Westray. This route connects two small islands off Scotland’s northeast coast.
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Kegata to Apowo – 2.4 km
In the province of Papua, the remote villages of Kegata and Apowo are hard to reach by land due to dense forests and steep mountains. They each have small airstrips. The 2.4-kilometre flight between them is one of the world’s shortest but is not a commercial route. Small aircraft flown by humanitarian groups use this flight to deliver essential services to the villagers.
Caye Caulker to Caye Chapel – 4 km
Caye Caulker is a small island in Belize known for its slow pace of life. However, it has a short flight to the nearby island of Caye Chapel. Tropic Air offers a 4-kilometre commercial flight between these two islands.
Connemara to Inis Mór – 16 km
Inis Mór is the largest of the Aran Islands off the coast of Ireland. Travelling there can be difficult, so one of the world’s shortest flights covers this 16-kilometre distance.
Sint Maarten to Anguilla – 19 km
Travelling from Sint Maarten to Anguilla usually takes about 25 minutes by ferry. A flight covers the 19-kilometre distance in just 10 minutes. Enjoy beautiful views when you take off and land at Sint Maarten’s Princess Juliana International Airport with Anguilla Air Services.
Karpathos to Kasos – 20 km
Many of the world’s shortest flights go to or from islands. This is true for the 20-kilometer trip between the islands of Karpathos and Kasos in Greece.
Sint Maarten to Saba – 44 km
Sint Maarten offers quick flights to the nearby island of Saba. A ferry ride takes 90 minutes, but a flight completes the 44-kilometre journey in just 15 minutes. Saba is a small, largely unexplored Caribbean island, perfect for scuba diving, hiking, and relaxing by the beach.
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A Scottish flight operated by Loganair connects the Orkney islands of Westray and Papa Westray, making it the shortest commercial flight in the world at just one and a half minutes. A recent animated video by ‘Aviation Heaven’ shows the flight taking just 1 minute and 14 seconds, with optimal weather conditions allowing it to complete in just 47 seconds.
