Nonstop flight route between Bitburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany and Port Elizabeth, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bitburg Airport (BBJ), Bitburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany and Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), Port Elizabeth, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,915 miles (or 9,519 kilometers).

A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between Bitburg Airport and Port Elizabeth International Airport, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.

Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between Bitburg Airport and Port Elizabeth International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Bitburg Airport (BBJ):

• The USAF departed for the second time in September 1997, and Bitburg Airport was returned to the civil aircraft which now call it home.
• In addition to being known as "Bitburg Airport", another name for BBJ is "Flugplatz Bitburg".
• The closest airport to Bitburg Airport (BBJ) is Spangdahlem Air Base (SPM), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) ENE of BBJ.
• Prior to its current civilian usage, Bitburg Air Base was a front-line NATO base during the Cold War.
• Bitburg Airport (BBJ) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Bitburg Airport (BBJ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,990 miles (19,295 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.

Facts about Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ):

• The airport resides at an elevation of 226 feet above mean sea level.
• The closest airport to Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ) is Port Alfred Airport (AFD), which is located 79 miles (127 kilometers) ENE of PLZ.
• Because of Port Elizabeth International Airport's relatively low elevation of 226 feet, planes can take off or land at Port Elizabeth International Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• A highlight in Port Elizabeth's history was the first flight to Port Elizabeth from Cape Town in 1917, made by Major Allister Mackintosh Miller.
• Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ) has 2 runways.
• 1 February 2008 - King Abdullah II of Jordan's Airbus A340-200 landed at Port Elizabeth as he makes his way down the Garden Route to Cape Town on a Harley-Davidson motorbike.
• 17 May 2004 - John Travolta landed his personal Qantas Boeing 707 at the airport directly from Mauritius as he was visiting a nearby private game reserve.
• The furthest airport from Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ) is Princeville Airport (HPV), which is located 11,567 miles (18,615 kilometers) away in Hanalei, Hawaii, United States.