Nonstop flight route between Galena, Alaska, United States and Varna, Bulgaria:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL), Galena, Alaska, United States and Varna Airport Aksakovo (VAR), Varna, Bulgaria would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,972 miles (or 8,002 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 Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport and Varna Airport Aksakovo, 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 Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport and Varna Airport Aksakovo. 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 Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL):

• The closest airport to Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) is Koyukuk Airport (KYU), which is located 25 miles (41 kilometers) WNW of GAL.
• The furthest airport from Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 10,313 miles (16,598 kilometers) away in George, South Africa.
• In addition to being known as "Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport", another name for GAL is "(former Galena Air Force Base)".
• Because of Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport's relatively low elevation of 153 feet, planes can take off or land at Edward G. Pitka Sr. 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 airport also sports a ski-jump takeoff ramp at one end and provisions for arresting gear at the other, a leftover from the Cold War years as Galena Air Force Base, as tactical aircraft required more landing and takeoff space than was available on the runway.
• Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) has 2 runways.
• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 7,784 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 7,447 enplanements in 2009, and 12,421 in 2010.

Facts about Varna Airport Aksakovo (VAR):

• In addition to being known as "Varna Airport Aksakovo", another name for VAR is "Летище Варна Аксаково".
• Varna Airport Aksakovo (VAR) currently has only 1 runway.
• Terminal 2 started operations as of 18 August 2013.
• Because of Varna Airport Aksakovo's relatively low elevation of 230 feet, planes can take off or land at Varna Airport Aksakovo 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 Varna Airport Aksakovo (VAR) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,224 miles (18,063 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Varna Airport Aksakovo handled 132,000 passengers last year.
• On 24 May 2013, Air VIA flight 502 from Leipzig to Varna overshot the runway at Varna Airport after touchdown.
• The taxi piazza are located in front of Terminal 1 "Departures".
• The closest airport to Varna Airport Aksakovo (VAR) is Burgas Airport (BOJ), which is located 48 miles (78 kilometers) SSW of VAR.
• From 15 October 2011 until 28 February 2012, Varna airport was closed for a reconstruction of the runway.
• Currently, Varna Airport is subject to heavy traffic with the growing tourism industry in Bulgaria and is in need of major investments to modernize, expand and handle projected passenger traffic.