Nonstop flight route between Decatur, Alabama, United States and Falkland Islands:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from DCU to MPN:
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- About this route
- DCU Airport Information
- MPN Airport Information
- Facts about DCU
- Facts about MPN
- Map of Nearest Airports to DCU
- List of Nearest Airports to DCU
- Map of Furthest Airports from DCU
- List of Furthest Airports from DCU
- Map of Nearest Airports to MPN
- List of Nearest Airports to MPN
- Map of Furthest Airports from MPN
- List of Furthest Airports from MPN
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Pryor Field Regional Airport (DCU), Decatur, Alabama, United States and RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN), Falkland Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,219 miles (or 10,009 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 Pryor Field Regional Airport and RAF Mount Pleasant, 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 Pryor Field Regional Airport and RAF Mount Pleasant. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | DCU / KDCU |
Airport Name: | Pryor Field Regional Airport |
Location: | Decatur, Alabama, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 34°39'15"N by 86°56'43"W |
Area Served: | Decatur, Alabama |
Operator/Owner: | Decatur/Athens Airport Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 592 feet (180 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from DCU |
More Information: | DCU Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MPN / EGYP |
Airport Name: | RAF Mount Pleasant |
Location: | Falkland Islands |
GPS Coordinates: | 51°49'22"S by 58°26'49"W |
Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Defence |
View all routes: | Routes from MPN |
More Information: | MPN Maps & Info |
Facts about Pryor Field Regional Airport (DCU):
- Because of Pryor Field Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 592 feet, planes can take off or land at Pryor Field Regional 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.
- Pryor Field Regional Airport (DCU) currently has only 1 runway.
- Situated next to Calhoun Community College, the airport serves the western portion of the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area and most of the Decatur Metropolitan Area.
- The furthest airport from Pryor Field Regional Airport (DCU) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,180 miles (17,992 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Flying training was performed with Fairchild PT-19s as the primary trainer.
- The closest airport to Pryor Field Regional Airport (DCU) is Huntsville International Airport (HSV), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) E of DCU.
Facts about RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN):
- The closest airport to RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Port Stanley Airport (PSY), which is located 30 miles (49 kilometers) ENE of MPN.
- The furthest airport from RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Mohe Gulian Airport (OHE), which is nearly antipodal to RAF Mount Pleasant (meaning RAF Mount Pleasant is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mohe Gulian Airport), and is located 12,353 miles (19,879 kilometers) away in Mohe, Heilongjiang, China.
- RAF Mount Pleasant is the newest permanent airfield in the Royal Air Force.
- A flight of Westland Sea King helicopters for support and search and rescue has been located at Mount Pleasant since November 2007.
- On 2 March 2012, the Argentinian President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner called for Aerolineas Argentinas flights to Buenos Aires to replace LAN Airlines flights to Chile.
- Using the IATA airport code MPN, RAF Mount Pleasant also acts as the Falkland Islands' only international airport, along with its military role.
- There is also a Joint Communications Unit providing the electronic warfare and command and control systems for the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force.