Nonstop flight route between Kaitaia, New Zealand and Pituffik, Greenland:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from KAT to THU:
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- About this route
- KAT Airport Information
- THU Airport Information
- Facts about KAT
- Facts about THU
- Map of Nearest Airports to KAT
- List of Nearest Airports to KAT
- Map of Furthest Airports from KAT
- List of Furthest Airports from KAT
- Map of Nearest Airports to THU
- List of Nearest Airports to THU
- Map of Furthest Airports from THU
- List of Furthest Airports from THU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Kaitaia Airport (KAT), Kaitaia, New Zealand and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,011 miles (or 14,501 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 Kaitaia Airport and Thule Air Base, 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 Kaitaia Airport and Thule Air Base. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | KAT / NZKT |
Airport Name: | Kaitaia Airport |
Location: | Kaitaia, New Zealand |
GPS Coordinates: | 35°4'12"S by 173°17'7"E |
Operator/Owner: | Far North Holdings Ltd. |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 270 feet (82 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from KAT |
More Information: | KAT Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | THU / BGTL |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Pituffik, Greenland |
GPS Coordinates: | 76°31'51"N by 68°42'11"W |
View all routes: | Routes from THU |
More Information: | THU Maps & Info |
Facts about Kaitaia Airport (KAT):
- Because of Kaitaia Airport's relatively low elevation of 270 feet, planes can take off or land at Kaitaia 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.
- Kaitaia Airport receives Beechcraft 1900D's twice daily Mon-Fri and daily Sat-Sun.
- These distances are within the range of many light aircraft when fitted with long range tanks, while the direct distances are usually used with the larger private aircraft which are able to land at Kaitaia Airport.
- Kaitaia Airport (KAT) has 2 runways.
- The closest airport to Kaitaia Airport (KAT) is Kerikeri Airport (KKE), which is located 38 miles (61 kilometers) ESE of KAT.
- The furthest airport from Kaitaia Airport (KAT) is Kenitra Air Base (NNA), which is nearly antipodal to Kaitaia Airport (meaning Kaitaia Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Kenitra Air Base), and is located 12,383 miles (19,929 kilometers) away in Kenitra, Morocco.
- 852 km to the North West of Kaitaia is Norfolk Island Airport from which it is 754 km to Noumea in New Caledonia, or 900 km to Lord Howe Island which can be used as a stepping stone to the Australian mainland.
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- In 1957 construction began on 4 Nike Missile sites around the base, and they and their radar systems were operational by the end of 1958.
- Thule Air Base or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport, is the United States Air Force's northernmost base, located 1,207 km north of the Arctic Circle and 1,524 km from the North Pole on the northwest side of the island of Greenland.
- The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
- Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952.
- Thule Air Base is home to the 21st Space Wing's global network of sensors providing missile warning, space surveillance and space control to North American Aerospace Defense Command and Air Force Space Command.
- In 1959, the airbase was the main staging point for the construction of Camp Century, some 150 mi from the base.
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
- Thule is the location where the fastest recorded sea level surface wind speed in the world was measured when a peak speed of 333 kilometres per hour was recorded on 8 March 1972 prior to the instrument's destruction.
- In 1818, Sir John Ross’s expedition made first contact with nomadic Polar Eskimos in the area.
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.