Nonstop flight route between Hawker, South Australia, Australia and Albert Lea, Minnesota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wilpena Pound (HWK), Hawker, South Australia, Australia and Albert Lea Municipal Airport (AEL), Albert Lea, Minnesota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,524 miles (or 15,328 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 Wilpena Pound and Albert Lea Municipal 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 Wilpena Pound and Albert Lea Municipal 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 Wilpena Pound (HWK):

• The name of the Pound, Wilpena, is reported to be Aboriginal, meaning "place of bent fingers".
• The furthest airport from Wilpena Pound (HWK) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is located 11,642 miles (18,736 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
• Because of Wilpena Pound's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Wilpena Pound 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.
• Although not part of the Pound, the adjacent Elder Range was named by Frederick Sinnett after the very successful Adelaide businessman, Sir Thomas Elder.
• The closest airport to Wilpena Pound (HWK) is Leigh Creek Airport (LGH), which is located 67 miles (108 kilometers) N of HWK.
• After the immense labour of constructing a road through the torturous Wilpena Gap, they built a small homestead inside the Pound, which still stands today, and cleared some open patches in the thick scrub of the interior.

Facts about Albert Lea Municipal Airport (AEL):

• Albert Lea Municipal Airport (AEL) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Albert Lea Municipal Airport (AEL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,773 miles (17,338 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Albert Lea Municipal Airport (AEL) is Austin Municipal Airport (AUM), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) E of AEL.
• In the last 15 years, there have been 8 major soaring contests at the Albert Lea Airport.