Nonstop flight route between Filton, Bristol, United Kingdom and Westport, New Zealand:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bristol Filton Airport (FZO), Filton, Bristol, United Kingdom and Westport Airport (WSZ), Westport, New Zealand would travel a Great Circle distance of 11,707 miles (or 18,841 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 Bristol Filton Airport and Westport 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 Bristol Filton Airport and Westport 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 Bristol Filton Airport (FZO):

• Before WWII there was a belief that German bombers had insufficient range to reach Filton, however, the invasion of France by the Nazis in 1940 changed the situation.
• Companies within the boundary of the aerodrome are BAE Systems, Airbus, MBDA and Rolls-Royce, as well as a number of aircraft maintenance companies, flying schools and the South West of England Royal Mail letter sorting depot.
• During the late 1990s and up to 2010 Douglas DC8 and Boeing 747-200 aircraft flew regularly in and out of Filton, as at the time Filton was the maintenance base for MK Airlines.
• Bristol Filton Airport (FZO) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Bristol Filton Airport", another name for FZO is "Filton Aerodrome".
• From 1929 the 501 Squadron was based at RAF Filton.
• Because of Bristol Filton Airport's relatively low elevation of 225 feet, planes can take off or land at Bristol Filton 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.
• The furthest airport from Bristol Filton Airport (FZO) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,930 miles (19,200 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• In 1948, 501 Squadron was equipped with De Havilland Vampire jets.
• On 26 November 2003, Concorde 216 made the final ever Concorde flight from Heathrow, passing over the Bay of Biscay before making a low pass over Bristol and finally returning to Filton where it is now maintained on a temporary apron, although has not been open to the public as a visitor attraction since 2010.
• The closest airport to Bristol Filton Airport (FZO) is Bristol Airport (BRS), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSW of FZO.
• Before World War II, there were only grass runways at Filton.
• In 1960, an RAF Vulcan bomber, approaching from the west, landed at Filton in heavy rain.

Facts about Westport Airport (WSZ):

• Because of Westport Airport's relatively low elevation of 13 feet, planes can take off or land at Westport 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.
• The furthest airport from Westport Airport (WSZ) is Braga Airport (BGZ), which is nearly antipodal to Westport Airport (meaning Westport Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Braga Airport), and is located 12,426 miles (19,998 kilometers) away in Braga, Portugal.
• The closest airport to Westport Airport (WSZ) is Greymouth Airport (GMN), which is located 54 miles (87 kilometers) SSW of WSZ.
• Westport Airport (WSZ) currently has only 1 runway.