Nonstop flight route between Grand Island, Nebraska, United States and Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Central Nebraska Regional Airport (GRI), Grand Island, Nebraska, United States and Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST), Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,619 miles (or 7,434 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 Central Nebraska Regional Airport and Maastricht Aachen 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 Central Nebraska Regional Airport and Maastricht Aachen 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 Central Nebraska Regional Airport (GRI):

• Central Nebraska Regional Airport was selected to be a new Chinook Helicopter Base.
• The furthest airport from Central Nebraska Regional Airport (GRI) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,617 miles (17,087 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to Central Nebraska Regional Airport (GRI) is Hastings Municipal Airport (HSI), which is located 26 miles (41 kilometers) SSW of GRI.
• The Federal Aviation Administration says the airport had 7,961 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 20,136 enplanements in 2009, and 37,101 in 2010.
• Central Nebraska Regional Airport (GRI) has 2 runways.

Facts about Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST):

• A promotion campaign by the Dutch tourist board for the nearby town of Valkenburg aan de Geul, aimed at British tourists, was highly successful and brought services by Invicta Airlines, Britannia and Channel Airways.
• Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST) currently has only 1 runway.
• An ILS system, which allows landings in poor weather, was built in 1967, for runway 22 only.
• Maastricht Aachen Airport handled 36,300 passengers last year.
• As Nazi Germany was rapidly collapsing, the front was already well into Germany by the time the field was ready, and no direct combat sorties were operated from Y-44.
• The closest airport to Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST) is NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) ENE of MST.
• The furthest airport from Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,935 miles (19,207 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In March 2011, the airport was certified to handle the upcoming Boeing 747-8, as two of the airports major airlines Cargolux and AirBridge Cargo have placed orders for this aircraft.
• The field was built in less than 2 months and was operational on 22 March 1945, and was designated Y-44.
• The late 1950s and early 1960s brought significant expansion in commercial operations at the airport.
• Because of Maastricht Aachen Airport's relatively low elevation of 375 feet, planes can take off or land at Maastricht Aachen 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.
• Because of the proximity to the new headquarters, the decision was made to create a temporary airfield between the towns of Beek, Geulle and Ulestraten.
• On 14 May 1985, Pope John Paul II held an open air mass for 50,000 people at the airport, as part of his visit to the Netherlands.