Sowieso is het vliegveld ver weg, dus we vertrekken vroeg.

Here sowieso means something like anyway, in any case, or regardless.

It tells the listener that the speaker considers the next point true no matter what: the airport is far away, so leaving early makes sense.

A useful note: in modern Dutch, sowieso can also mean definitely or certainly in other contexts. But in this sentence, the anyway / in any case meaning is the best fit.

Because Dutch main clauses normally follow the verb-second rule.

That means:

• the finite verb comes in the second position
• whatever comes first can be the subject, but it can also be an adverb like sowieso

So:

• Sowieso = first position
• is = second position
• het vliegveld = subject after the verb

That is why Dutch says:

Sowieso is het vliegveld ver weg.

and not:

Sowieso het vliegveld is ver weg.

If the subject comes first, then you get the more basic order:

Het vliegveld is ver weg.

Because vliegveld is a het-word.

A very helpful rule with Dutch compounds is this:

• the last part of the compound usually decides the gender and article

Here the last part is veld:

• het veld

So the whole compound becomes:

• het vliegveld

This same rule works with many other compound nouns in Dutch.

Often yes, in everyday use both can mean airport.

But there is a small nuance:

• luchthaven is the more standard/formal word for an airport
• vliegveld literally means airfield, so it can sound a bit more general

In normal conversation, though, Dutch speakers very often use vliegveld when they simply mean the airport.

So in this sentence, het vliegveld is perfectly natural.

Because Dutch usually writes compound nouns as one word.

So:

• vlieg
  • veld → vliegveld

This is very normal in Dutch and often surprises English speakers, because English more often writes similar combinations as two words.

Dutch compounds are commonly written together:

• treinstation
• huisdeur
• ziekenhuis

So vliegveld as one word is exactly what you should expect.

Ver weg is a very common Dutch expression meaning far away.

Here:

• ver = far
• weg helps form the idea of away

In this sentence, the standard spelling is two words:

• het vliegveld is ver weg

Dutch also has veraf, which can often mean almost the same thing:

• Het vliegveld is veraf.

But ver weg is extremely common and very natural.

Because dus here connects two main clauses.

So the pattern is:

• clause 1
• dus
• clause 2 with normal main-clause order

That gives:

• Sowieso is het vliegveld ver weg, dus we vertrekken vroeg.

After dus, the subject we stays before the verb vertrekken.

This is different from words like daarom:

• Het vliegveld is ver weg, daarom vertrekken we vroeg.

With daarom, the word comes inside the clause and triggers the normal verb-second pattern:

• daarom vertrekken we

So this contrast is useful:

• ..., dus we vertrekken vroeg.
• ..., daarom vertrekken we vroeg.

Because Dutch does not usually create adverbs with a special ending like English -ly.

The same form often works as:

• an adjective
• an adverb

So:

• een vroege vlucht = an early flight
• we vertrekken vroeg = we leave early

In your sentence, vroeg is an adverb modifying vertrekken.

This is very normal in Dutch.

Yes, often it can.

For example:

• Sowieso is het vliegveld ver weg.
• Het vliegveld is sowieso ver weg.

Both are possible.

The difference is mostly one of emphasis:

• starting with sowieso gives it stronger sentence-level emphasis
• placing it later can sound a little more neutral

So the original sentence sounds natural, but it is not the only possible placement.

The comma separates two full main clauses:

• Sowieso is het vliegveld ver weg
• dus we vertrekken vroeg

In Dutch, a comma before a linking word like dus is very common when it joins two complete clauses, especially if that makes the sentence easier to read.

So the comma here is natural and standard.