Shortest Jet Flight
 

I was suprised to find out that one of my flights this weekend IAD-PHL of a little over 100 miles was on a Jet. (A320) I thought this was a big plane for such a short haul, normally I fly a gulfstream or prop...

Let's see:

DL has CVG-LEX (70 miles) and CVG-SDF (83 miles).

I remember when EA flew FTL-MIA (some 20 miles)!

United used to fly SFO-OAK using a big jet. The distance is about 10 miles. The flight then continued to the East Coast. This strange situation was written up in a Wall Street Journal story about frequent flyers. Some people regularly flew SFO-OAK, then took BART (the subway) back home, just to get miles. The tickets were very cheap for some reason.

Bruce

The shortest scheduled jet flight I was on went -- years ago -- from San Francisco to Oakland, maybe 9 nautical miles. The flight continued to PDX.

The current UA schedule shows these short jet flights (I've left out duplicate jet flights on the same routes):

UA 786 BUF-ROC 55 miles Boeing 737
UA 5616 ORD-MKE 67 miles Canadair RJ
UA 1924 ORD-MKE 67 miles Boeing 727
UA 877 STT-SJU 68 miles Airbus 320
UA 2916 DEN-COS 72 miles Boeing 737

Some other airline must have scheduled jet service for a route shorter than 55 miles. Bay area inter-airport? MIA-FLL? Caribbean island-hops?



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"If you want to win the game, write the rules."

DL also has ABE-MDT on a 737-300 which is 77 miles.

I dont have the mileage at hand but these are nice and short:

OGG-HNL DL flies a L1011

IAH-HOU CO used a DC9

US Air flys 737's, F100's, A319's from RDU - CLT, just over 100 miles.

They fly 737's and F100's into FAY from CLT that go no where. Flight time is 23 minutes. (They also fly a Dash-8 into FAY)

I'm still glad there's F100's (not so many 732's in here) for those FC upgrades. They may be short but hey...it's FC! http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/biggrin.gif

Interesting topic. I suggest that we leave RJs out of this and stick with the big mainline jets.

Houston Hobby to Intercontinental comes to mind. Makes for a last minute mileage runs for those in Houston short of Continental Elite status. A couple daily 737s go in addition to the Express flights.

The HOU-IAH add on is free with the flight from IAH, so many people on the Hobby side of town start their journey in HOU for a cool extra 500 miles.

Nw took me on a jet flight from Flint to Detroit Michigan. It was like a take off and landing without any cruising. The distance has to be under 60 miles, which is what it is by car.

Not the shortest on the already mentioned list, but... I've done PHL-BWI on an A320. It was 89 miles.

Some of Delta's AUS-SLC flights stop in SAT. It's a 19 minute, 70 mile flight. The morning flight is an MD90.

I guess my shortest trip so far is BOS-EWR on a 757 which is kinda strange considering it is only about 170 miles apart. Also CO flies to MEM on those beautiful EMJ-145s but NW flies the big A320 to MEM and then continue to Miami.

I guess I should rule out HOU-IAH and IAH-EFD
since service is no longer operated with jets.

I did find an interesting flight, tho...DCA to IAD...somewhere around 20 miles. It's operated by Midwest Express... and flight time is SIX HOURS. It leaves DCA in the morning and then heads to the Midwest B/4 returning to IAD in the evening.

Unfortunately, Midwest Express does not publish a fare in the DCA-IAD market. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

I wonder why? http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

There is a thread on this somewhere from long ago. Alaska Air flys regular jet service between Wrangell and Petersburg (in Southeast Alaska). That distance, if I recall correctly, is somewhere around 23 miles.

Western and then Delta used to fly jets out of DCA which first stopped at IAD before heading out to SLC. Did the same on the way back, I think to avoid the limitations on the length of flights for planes out of DCA at the time. Flew that flight dozens of times headed from DCA out to SLC or various other locations in the intermountain West during the 80's, back when I was a federal prosecutor based in DC.

Djlawman

TPA - MCO (Delta Express ) on a 737-200 80 miles.

Ithaca, NY to Elmira, NY on a DC9. 30 mile trip. Usually takes about 12 minutes. (US Airways)

US Air doesn't justify having two jets go out to both cities, so, they have a flight PIT-ITH-ELM-PIT.

MileKing

That's a mighty short flight you wrote about.
Here is another "shortie". Back in the late 60's or early 70's (they say memory is the SECOND thing to go with guys you know) I believe it was Branniff flew 727s out of Amon Carter field (FTW) to Love Field (DAL), a distance of about 19 miles. It had something to do with some federal regulation I think. It may have been to get around the Love Field 4-state federal regulation. In any case, they were regularly scheduled flights, all legit and all that with regular jets.

Heck, the smallest jet I remember back then was the BAC-111, at least in the normal world (Texas that is!).

Anybody else from DFW-land remember this oldie but goodie?

Air UK as they used to be KLM UK as they are now used to fly a 146 (100 seats) between Edinburgh and Glasgow and then on to Gatwick(did that) about 45 miles by road, Swissair used to fly 747s and DC-10 between Geneva and Zurich (sorry I do ot know the distance. American used to fly an MD80 between Bakersfield and Santa Barbara as a continuation of a DFW-SMF service.BA fly 757s between London and Manchester and do a beverage and snack service!

Finnair uses DC-9 between Helsinki and Tallinn, Estonia sometimes. Distance is 63 miles. (Somehow, however, flight time is quite long - 40 min - and they offer chocolate during flight).
other:
Swissair flys MD-83 between Zurich to Basel. Distance 49 miles, flying time 30 min. Not sure about service.


[This message has been edited by fokker50 (edited 11-15-2000).]

Northwest currently flies DC9s between Detroit Metro and Flint, which is 56 miles.

United flight 5510 from Green Bay to Appleton, Wisconsin is 25 miles on a 100-seet BAE-146 jet.

Years ago, Continental offered a flight from ORD to ORD (0 miles!). It was a flight to nowhere for those who wanted to experience flight. This was back in the regulated days where flying was expensive and an outing - few flew for fun! I was too young to remember most of the flight.

Oops, sorry. It was on a DC-9 according to a reliable source (ok, my dad, who paid for the tickets for the trip).

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

This thread reminded me of the shortest jet flight (DC9) I ever did: LAX-BUR on PSA in the mid-80s. Non-scheduled stop between LAX-OAK as the Burbank plane had a mechanical and they had us stop to pick up the stranded passengers. I timed the flight, ten minutes from wheels up to touchdown, approximately 12-13 miles.

DL 1225 CVG-SDF is 83 miles on a DL 727.

DL 118 BDL-JFK is 106 miles on a DL 767-300ER with BusinessElite!

DL 1490 is sold as ATL-FLL, but it stops in MIA first. The last leg MIA-FLL is 21 miles on a DL 767-200.

DL 2408 MCO-TPA is 80 miles on a DL Express 737.

I am sure there are more examples out there, these are just the ones I came across in the DL computer.

DL: Great Falls - Helena: 67 miles

I flew 2 sub-100 mile legs on US "large" jets earlier this year:

PHL-DCA (737-300/400) and GSO-CLT (F-100 IIRC).

Before Piedmont was absorbed by US, also flew SYR-ITH (F-28?)

I think one thing to keep in mind here is why a jet is being used for such a flight. Most of these short flights between non-hub cities are more of a 'drop off and pick up people heading to a hub' situation.

Other than mileage gaining motives, does anyone really ever fly from OAK-SFO for example with that being their only flight on the trip?

No, of course you wouldnt't fly SFO-OAK with no other flights - taxi would have been about the same cost, with the advantages of pick up and dropoff wherever you really wanted to be!

But I'm one of the people who bought the flight just for the miles. Notice my phrasing: My partner and I drove to SFO, I checked in, and got back in my car! Yes, the miles showed up and I got the special award (it was one of those 8 segments = a free trip bonuses; nobody would take it just for the 9 miles). I've always regretted not taking the flight, although I don't know if he would have been willing to drive across the bay to pick me up.

BTW, I'm told that the no smoking sign went off (it was back in the mid-80's) but the seat belt sign never did!

I've heard that it happens quite a few times in order to beat the DCA curfew, but I've only experienced the DCA-IAD jet flight once.
It was at least a dozen years ago on a New York Air DC-9 scheduled to leave DCA about 6PM. The flight was held up on the runway for well more than two hours and then the announcement came that since this jet was needed at EWR the next day, they were going over to IAD to wait out the ATC delays into the New York area. We were permitted to debark at IAD for more than an hour and get dinner (at a hot dog stand out near the gate area). Arrival at EWR was around midnight but as I remember, we were quite happy to have gotten home at all that same night.

[This message has been edited by monitor (edited 11-19-2000).]

On a flight between OAK and SFO, I wonder if the jet has to circle if there is a delay at SFO?

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

And are they cleared to land before they even take off?

I would think the biggest jet with the smallest flight leg would have to have been the SJC - NRT with a refuel stop in OAK this was on an AA 777 with the leg of SJC - OAK of 34 miles because SJC's runways are not long enough for Intl flights to Asia.


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Cheers Scott

The AA SJC-NRT isn't nonstop? Really? I didn't know that. I'm surprised AA is adding so many int'l flights to SJC (NRT/CDG/Taiwan) if the airport can't handle them.

Shortest jet flight? I think the shortest prop plane (I know it is not a jet but still) would be UA's IAD-BWI. Less than 50 miles and still going on today. The shortest jet however I have been on lately was an Airbus 319 or 320 on USAir from DCA to PHL at 6am. The plane is brand new, 2 classes of service and great for a flight to say Chicago or Dallas, but not the 4+ hours to San Diego afterwards!

And yes, I do remember the last flight out at night from ATL-MIA that would then continue to FLL. It was July 1993 and only 8 minutes flight time, no beverage service and seat belts on all time. Took off South into the Everglades and then turned around to head north. Don't want to overshoot your target right?

Now here is my question, what is the longest commerical flight? I believe it may be New York - Cape Town on South African Airways. Whaddya think?

I believe the longest flight today is ORD-HKG, but starting in March, it will be JFK-HKG. EWR-HKG (a few miles shorter) will also begin then.

Bruce

A little bit off topic but...

Will the longest flight be more expensive?
e.g. Will the price HKG-ORD more expensive than HKG-LAX-ORD?

Also, the flight is so long, will the meal service be compromised b'cos of space limitation?

Thanks!

So, did we reach any conclusion on the shortest flight?

Wait....there's a regular flight not yet mentioned, LAX to SNA which has got to be less than 50 miles, although I don't know what type of plane.

I've seen it a few times come up a few times when checking flights from SJC to SNA on aa.com (and if memory is right, the LAX to SNA leg is on United). I've never tried SJC-LAX-SNA, but seeing all the mileage related posts could inspire me to go for the extra miles if some day there's no time constraints for me to get to SNA.