Have you heard of Project Sunrise? It’s what the Australian airline Qantas is calling their ambitious plan to run non-stop flights from New York and London to Australia. Some of them will last a record-breaking 22 hours.
Every spectrum has two ends, though. If Project Sunrise represents the longest flights in the world, which routes are the shortest? Fasten your seatbelts and stow your tray tables! In this post, we’re highlighting 12 of the quickest flights on the planet…
1. Hyannis (HYA) to Nantucket (ACK)
Kicking things off is a 23-minute, 31-mile flight operated by Cape Air that connects the Cape Cod village of Hyannis to the island of Nantucket. Buying a one-way ticket with the carrier will set you back roughly $100.
If you don’t want to fly, there are also ferry services between these two New England destinations. The high-speed passenger catamaran only takes thirty minutes longer than the plane.
2. Hyannis (HYA) to Martha’s Vineyard (MVY)
Cape Air runs a separate service from Hyannis that may be the shortest commercial flight in the US. The journey to Martha’s Vineyard, another small, popular, and picturesque Massachusetts island, is 26 miles long and lasts 18 minutes.
One-way tickets currently cost $60. The same trip by high-speed ferry takes an hour.
3. Sint Maarten (SXM) to Anguilla (AXA)
Sint Maarten is a self-governing country in the Caribbean that falls within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Anguilla is a British overseas territory located nearby.
The long way to travel between them involves a 25-minute ferry ride. But if you’re in a hurry, you can catch a flight and cut that time in half. The airline is called Anguilla Air Services, which charges approximately $175 for a one-way flight.
4. Connemara (NNR) to Inishmore (IOR)
A small village called Inveran on Ireland’s rugged west coast is home to Connemara Regional Airport. From there, you can catch the shortest flight in the country.
Run by Aer Arann Islands, a tiny nine-seater plane takes you to Inishmore, the most popular of the famed Aran Islands. The 11-mile flight takes approximately six minutes. A one-way ticket currently costs $38 (€35).
5. Boston (BOS) to Provincetown (PVC)
New England is obviously a good place to find short flights. Want the quickest way to get from Boston, Massachusetts, to Provincetown at the very tip of Cape Cod?
For $80, you can catch a flight that covers the 50-mile distance in just 30 minutes. Two airlines run this service: Cape Air and JetBlue.
6. Molokai (MKK) to Kalaupapa (LUP)
Hawaii’s fifth largest Island has two airports: Molokai Airport and Kalaupapa Airport. The flight between them is one of the shortest in the world, let alone the United States!
With just under 9 miles separating the two locations, you’re usually airborne for less than 15 minutes. Keep in mind that you currently need a permit to visit Kalaupapa National Historical Park.
7. Kahului (OGG) to Molokai (MKK)
Kahului Airport is the primary transport hub on the magical island of Maui, Hawaii. From there, you can hop on a plane to Molokai, approximately 46 miles away.
The flight is operated by America’s largest commuter airline, Southern Airways. It takes 35 minutes, and prices start from $85.
8. Petersburg (PSG) to Wrangell (WRG)
Alaska Airlines offers a 31-mile flight from the small town of Petersburg, on Mitkof Island, to Wrangell, Alaska. The journey takes 25 minutes on a Boeing 737 and costs approximately $120 one-way.
Fun fact: this is one leg of the infamous milk run, the name given to a collection of flight routes around Alaska designed to supply isolated towns with vital supplies, such as milk.
9. Minami-Daito (MMD) to Kita-Daito (KTD)
Did you know that Japan’s Okinawa prefecture comprises 160 different islands? Minami-Daito and Kita-Daito are two of them, and they’re connected by flights run by Japan Transocean Air.
The 8-mile flight between the islands takes 20 minutes, making it the shortest flight in the country. Please note: the image above shows Okinawa, not Minami-Daito or Kita-Daito.
10. Kasos (KSJ) to Karpathos (AOK)
It takes significantly longer to board the plane than to fly between the gorgeous Greek islands of Kasos and Karpathos.
At one point, this was the shortest flight in the world. With just 12 miles between them, the journey takes less than five minutes. You fly with Aegean Airlines on a ticket costing around $22 (€20) one way.
11. Kegata (WZ38) to Apowo (WX15)
This commercial flight in Papua isn’t a regular service. Honestly, from looking online, it’s hard to tell if it’s even an official service. But it definitely happens! When it does, it’s the shortest commercial flight on earth.
The Kegata and Apowo airstrips are just over 1.2 miles apart, with dense jungle between them (hence why you’d fly rather than go by land). The total flight time takes just over a minute.
12. Westray (WRU) to Papa Westray (PPW)
According to Guinness World Records, the shortest commercial flight in the world takes two minutes, including taxiing. Passengers fly 1.7 miles between the Orkney Islands of Westray and Papa Westray in a plane with eight seats.
In favorable winds, they can be airborne for less than a minute. Tickets cost as little as $19 (£15) at the time of writing.
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