Cape Town to Los Angeles
20h 24mgate to gate
The flight from Cape Town International Airport (CPT) to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) covers 16,080 km (9,992 miles) and takes approximately 20h 24m gate to gate for a typical jet.
The route heads west on an initial great-circle bearing of 282°, passing near 0.0° S, 49.9° W at its midpoint.
Bearing 282° west Midpoint 0.0° S, 49.9° W Model 805 km/h + 25 min
SOURCE·OurAirports + great-circle computation·REVIEWED JUL 2026
How this is worked out
- Take both airports' published coordinates from OurAirports — nothing here is scraped from another flight site.
- Great-circle distance by haversine on a mean earth radius of 6,371.0088 km: 16,080 km.
- Airborne time = that distance ÷ 805 km/h, a representative jet cruise speed: 19h 59m.
- Add a flat 25 minutes for pushback, taxi, climb, descent and taxi-in — the reason a 400 km hop is never half an hour: 20h 24m gate to gate.
- Winds, aircraft type and airline schedule padding are not modelled. The cruise-speed table shows how much that assumption is worth.
16,080 km / 805 km/h = 19h 59m airborne
+ 25 min ground = 20h 24m gate to gate
SOURCE·OurAirports + great-circle computation·REVIEWED JUL 2026
The same route, plotted on a world grid
The strip above gives the route its length and its shape. This gives it a position: latitude and longitude only, no coastlines, because a hand-drawn coastline would be decoration pretending to be data. On a flat grid the shortest path looks bent; on a globe it is straight.
Flight time at different cruise speeds
Aircraft type, winds and routing all move the real number. This is the same distance flown at different speeds, plus the 25-minute ground and climb allowance.
| Typical of | Cruise speed | Airborne | Gate to gate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turboprop / regional | 550 km/h | 29h 14m | 29h 39m |
| Narrowbody jet (A320, 737) | 780 km/h | 20h 37m | 21h 02m |
| Widebody jet (777, 787, A350) | 900 km/h | 17h 52m | 18h 17m |
| Private jet (Gulfstream) | 850 km/h | 18h 55m | 19h 20m |
Headwinds on an eastbound long-haul routinely add 30–60 minutes; the same route westbound can be quicker. Airlines publish schedules with padding built in.
SOURCE·OurAirports + great-circle computation·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Both airports
| CPT | LAX | |
|---|---|---|
| Airport | Cape Town International Airport | Los Angeles International Airport |
| City | Cape Town | Los Angeles |
| Country | South Africa | United States |
| ICAO | FACT | KLAX |
| Coordinates | -33.974, 18.6043 | 33.9425, -118.408 |
| Elevation | 151 ft | 125 ft |
Every figure on this plate is geometry. The shape of the earth is knowable; the airline's schedule is not.
Questions this plate answers
How long is the flight from Cape Town to Los Angeles?
A non-stop flight from Cape Town (CPT) to Los Angeles (LAX) takes about 20h 24m. The great-circle distance is 16,080 km (9,992 miles, 8,683 nautical miles), flying west on an initial bearing of 282°.
How far is Cape Town from Los Angeles?
16,080 kilometres in a straight line over the earth's surface — 9,992 miles or 8,683 nautical miles. Actual flown distance is usually 2–5% longer because aircraft follow airways, avoid weather and route around restricted airspace.
Is there a non-stop flight between CPT and LAX?
This page calculates the direct-line time and distance; it does not track airline schedules. At 16,080 km the route is at the extreme end of what any airliner can fly non-stop, so a connection is likely. Check an airline or booking site for what is actually scheduled.
What should I expect on a 20h 24m flight?
Anything past six hours is a long-haul flight: expect at least one meal service, a significant time-zone shift, and enough sitting that circulation and hydration start to matter. Cabin altitude, dry air and disrupted sleep do more damage to a training routine than the flight itself.
Airport coordinates from OurAirports (public domain). Distance is a great-circle calculation; flight time uses the model described on the method page. Flight times are great-circle estimates for planning only — always check the airline's published schedule.
