Skip to content
LHR → LOS

London to Lagos: distance, flight time and the route it really takes

London Heathrow to Murtala Muhammed is 5,004 km of great circle — 3,109 mi — and an estimated 6h 43m in the air. It crosses from Europe to Africa.

Great circle
5,004 km
3,109 mi
Estimated in the air
6h 43m
block time
Furthest from equator
51.5°N
at 0% along
One lap of Earth
12.5%
of 40,075 km

Of the 292 routes catalogued here, this is the 129th longest.

The London to Lagos route drawn as a great circle arc on a globe

What the aircraft actually flies over

From London the path crosses France, then Spain, then 500 km of open water, then Algeria, then Mali, then Niger, then Benin, then Nigeria.

The furthest the great circle gets from the equator is 51.5°N, 0% of the way along.

Holding a single compass bearing the whole way would cover almost exactly the same ground, so on this route the flat map and the globe agree.

The heading barely moves: south out of London, south into Lagos. Over this distance the curve has too little room to bend the compass.

From

LHR

London Heathrow

London, United Kingdom · Europe

51.5°N, 0.5°W

To

LOS

Murtala Muhammed

Lagos, Nigeria · Africa

6.6°N, 3.3°E

London to Lagos, asked and answered

How far is London to Lagos?
London to Lagos (LHR to LOS) is 5,004 km, or 3,109 mi, measured as great circle distance between the two airports.
How long is the flight from London to Lagos?
About 6h 43m in the air. That is an estimate from the distance at a typical airliner block speed, plus half an hour for taxi, climb and descent; published schedules vary with winds and routing.
What route does a London to Lagos flight take?
The great circle passes over France, then Spain, then 500 km of open water, then Algeria, then Mali, then Niger, then Benin, then Nigeria. It reaches 51.5°N at its furthest from the equator.

Where these numbers come from

Distances are computed from the two airports’ own coordinates, not looked up from published routes. Times are estimates, not schedules.

Why the shortest path is a curve →

Flown this one?

Orbit logs it in two taps and draws the arc on your own globe, along with every other flight you can remember. Free for your first 15.

Download now