# Shortest Commercially Available Flight? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 1, 2014, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442 "2014-05-01T15:11:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![lazybratsche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ba8739/32.png) [@lazybratsche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lazybratsche)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/41 "2014-05-02T17:33:34Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > [Here is the current timetable](http://www.loganair.co.uk/xtra_files/OrkneySummer3Mar14-26Oct14.pdf) for Loganair’s interisland flights. > > As well as the two-minute Westray - Papa Westray flight, there are some other flights taking 10 minutes or less: > > Stronsay to Sanday: 6 min > North Ronaldsay to Eday: 8-9 min. > North Ronaldsay to Papa Westray: 10 min. > > I don’t think you will beat Westray to Papa Westray though! Here is a Google Map showing how close the airstrips are: [Google Maps](http://goo.gl/maps/cIVZy) What’s the point of such a flight? Just from looking at the map, it looks like there might be 100 people on Papa Westray, maybe 1000 on Westray, with several ferry routes. The only rationale I can think of is maybe if the guy who owns most of Papa Westray lives on Westray, flies back and forth on a regular basis, and keeps the plane running for his tennants and neighbors. ---
**Author:** ![Andy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/aeb1de/32.png) [@Andy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/42 "2014-05-02T18:55:37Z")
> [@lazybratsche](#): > > What’s the point of such a flight? Just from looking at the map, it looks like there might be 100 people on Papa Westray, maybe 1000 on Westray, with several ferry routes… Postal services for those islands? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/43 "2014-05-02T19:36:31Z")
> [@Horatio\_Hellpop](#): > > South Korea, which is about the size of Indiana, has nine commercial airports and eleven civil airfields. Gimpo to Incheon (both serve Seoul) would be pretty short and might exist as a layover, but since both airports are on the same subway line, I doubt there’s much demand. There are flights available between Daegu and Busan and it’s a short flight. There are nineteen airports in [Indiana](http://www.mapsofworld.com/usa/states/indiana/indiana-airports.html). And while it didn’t make the list, [Pam’s Place Airport](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pam%27s_Place_Airport) deserves mention. ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/44 "2014-05-02T21:59:30Z")
Found this from Era Aviation: Aniak, AK to Chuathbaluk, AK which is just short of 16km away, but has no roads connecting them. Looks like Era offers a daily (except Sundays) flight at 12:10pm from Aniak, and the flight back to Aniak departs at 12:25pm. Flight time is 10 minutes and the trip costs $90 each way. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/45 "2014-05-02T22:51:55Z")
> [@lazybratsche](#): > > What’s the point of such a flight? Just from looking at the map, it looks like there might be 100 people on Papa Westray, maybe 1000 on Westray, with several ferry routes. The only rationale I can think of is maybe if the guy who owns most of Papa Westray lives on Westray, flies back and forth on a regular basis, and keeps the plane running for his tennants and neighbors. It’s so the airline doesn’t have to do a separate flight to each island. AFAIK the main purpose is to go to and from Kirkwall (and from there on to wherever), not between the islands. ---
**Author:** ![Mangosteen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Mangosteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangosteen)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/46 "2014-05-02T23:12:48Z")
I flew from Tahiti to the island of Moorea, 7 minutes. ---
**Author:** ![sbunny8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@sbunny8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sbunny8)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/47 "2014-05-03T02:17:17Z")
The shortest I can find in the continental USA is from Baltimore (BWI) to Philadelphia (PHL) US Airways flight 4601, 37minutes. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/48 "2014-05-03T02:51:03Z")
Silver Airways (operating for United Express) has flights between Bradford, PA and Jamestown, NY. That’s only about 40 miles. While you can book just that segment, the flight is operating as a stopping service to/from Cleveland. Bradford is losing its Essential Air Service subsidy, though, so it won’t have commercial flights for much longer. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/49 "2014-05-03T05:27:57Z")
> [@sbunny8](#): > > The shortest I can find in the continental USA is from Baltimore (BWI) to Philadelphia (PHL) US Airways flight 4601, 37minutes. Are you talking about flight time or total time? Baltimore to Philadelphia is a short air route but Denver to Colorado Springs is even shorter by air. I have taken both of them by chance in the past year. The Denver to Colorado Springs route is only 14 - 20 minutes depending on the aircraft and the routing that you get for a total distance of about 80 miles. It isn’t the shortest in the world but it is notable because it route that is routinely used between two large airports. The total time is about 40 minutes and most of that is spent taxiing. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/50 "2014-05-03T05:29:06Z")
> [@sbunny8](#): > > The shortest I can find in the continental USA is from Baltimore (BWI) to Philadelphia (PHL) US Airways flight 4601, 37minutes. Are you talking about flight time or total time? Baltimore to Philadelphia is a short air route but Denver to Colorado Springs is even shorter by air. I have taken both of them by chance in the past year. The Denver to Colorado Springs route is only 14 - 20 minutes depending on the aircraft and the routing that you get for a total distance of about 80 miles. It isn’t the shortest in the world but it is notable because it route that is routinely used between two large airports. The total time is about 40 minutes and most of that is spent taxiing. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/51 "2014-05-03T09:02:42Z")
> [@sbunny8](#): > > The shortest I can find in the continental USA is from Baltimore (BWI) to Philadelphia (PHL) US Airways flight 4601, 37minutes. Reagan National to Dulles would be shorter; while I doubt it’s offered as a destination, many flights out of National stop at Dulles on their way to a real destination. ---
**Author:** ![JustinC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justinc/32/8083_2.png) [@JustinC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JustinC)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/52 "2014-05-03T12:14:22Z")
The shortest flight I’ve been on was from Vegas to the Grand Canyon. Unfortunately there was an enormous dust storm approaching so we taxied, then went back and disembarked. ☹ I doubt I’ll be honeymooning in the States again, any time soon. ---
**Author:** ![Daylate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9dc877/32.png) [@Daylate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daylate)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/53 "2014-05-03T16:21:31Z")
Although no longer in business (last flights were in 1986), Island Airlines provided scheduled flights from Port Clinton, Michigan to a series of islands in Lake Erie. These flights started at the airport in Port Clinton and landed at Kelleys, South Bass, Middle Bass, and North Bass islands. It was dubbed the “World’s Shortest Airline” because the round-trip flight was 17 miles and took just 45 minutes. The really neat thing about these flights was that they exclusively used Ford Trimotors. As the last Trimotor was built in 1933, this meant that the airplane had a commercial lifespan of 53 years, ---
**Author:** ![actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/actualliberalnotoneofthose)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2014, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/54 "2014-05-04T16:31:14Z")
> [@sbunny8](#): > > The shortest I can find in the continental USA is from Baltimore (BWI) to Philadelphia (PHL) US Airways flight 4601, 37minutes. I’ve flown that route many times as a connecting flight. I figured that SBY to BWI (which I’ve flown many times, but not in 8-9 years) was pretty short, but it looks like they only go to PHL and CLT these days. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2014, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/55 "2014-05-04T19:37:00Z")
These planes fly at different speeds, right? So that might be needed comparing proximity on land. Eilat-to-Tel Aviv is pretty quick, I suppose, but I’ve never taken it. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2014, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/56 "2014-05-05T05:28:50Z")
The shortest I’ve ever flown was Vancouver BC to Victoria BC. It took about 15 minutes. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2016, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/57 "2016-09-26T02:49:38Z")
People’s Viennaline is making history by launching the world’s shortest international flight. The flight, from St. Gallen, Switzerland (ACH) to Friedrichshafen, Germany (FDH), covers a distance of 13 miles and lasts just eight minutes in the air (though it’s blocked for 20). Read more: [Austrian Carrier Has World's Shortest International Flight - The Points Guy](http://thepointsguy.com/2016/09/austrian-carrier-worlds-shortest-international-flight/#ixzz4LKI0GYyK) Daily Mail story has more and summary of other longest and shortest flights–which perhaps some more enterprising poster will compare to those already in this thread for completeness/correcti on either part. [Airline announces the world's shortest international flight, with the 13-mile journey taking just EIGHT MINUTES | Daily Mail Online](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3799904/Airline-announces-world-s-shortest-international-flight-13-mile-journey-taking-just-EIGHT-MINUTES.html) ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2016, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/58 "2016-09-26T02:59:06Z")
> [@Mangosteen](#): > > I flew from Tahiti to the island of Moorea, 7 minutes. I flew the opposite way last month: Moorea to Tahiti on Air Tahiti. The flight took 10 minutes. That was the shortest regularly scheduled flight I have ever taken. ---
**Author:** ![MichaelEmouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/michaelemouse/32/101_2.png) [@MichaelEmouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelEmouse)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2016, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/59 "2016-09-26T03:04:16Z")
What’s the point of these 2-15 minutes flights? Aside from areas in very rough terrain, isn’t it simpler and cheaper to make a road or go by boat? ---
**Author:** ![Francis\_Vaughan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/francis_vaughan/32/3093_2.png) [@Francis\_Vaughan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_Vaughan)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2016, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442/60 "2016-09-26T03:16:42Z")
> [@MichaelEmouse](#): > > What’s the point of these 2-15 minutes flights? Aside from areas in very rough terrain, isn’t it simpler and cheaper to make a road or go by boat? The most obvious is that you have arrived at the airport by another flight and are simply connecting for a final destination (or the reverse.) They may also be stopping points on a cycle of airports the plane runs around rather like a bus service. Boat can easily involve a whole lot more pain time and expense than a plane. Even a small plane can cover a lot of ground in 15 minutes. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shortest-commercially-available-flight/687442.md?page=4)