Nonstop flight route between Kikaiga Shima, Kikai-Shima Island, Japan and Pituffik, Greenland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kikai Airport (KKX), Kikaiga Shima, Kikai-Shima Island, Japan and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,148 miles (or 8,285 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 Kikai 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 Kikai 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:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Kikai Airport (KKX):

• In addition to being known as "Kikai Airport", other names for KKX include "Kikai/Kikaigashima Island Airport", "喜界空港" and "Kikai Kūkō".
• Kikai Airport (KKX) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Kikai Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Kikai 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 closest airport to Kikai Airport (KKX) is Amami Airport (ASJ), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) WNW of KKX.
• The furthest airport from Kikai Airport (KKX) is Antônio Correia Pinto de Macedo Airport (LAJ), which is nearly antipodal to Kikai Airport (meaning Kikai Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Antônio Correia Pinto de Macedo Airport), and is located 12,397 miles (19,952 kilometers) away in Lages, Santa Catarina, Brazil.

Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):

• In 1954, the 378 m Globecom Tower, a tower for military radio communication, was built at Northmountain.
• In 1949, Denmark joined NATO and abandoned its attempt to remove the United States bases.
• Thule Air Base is also home to the 821st Air Base Group and is responsible for air base support within the Thule Defense Area for the multinational population of "Team Thule." The base hosts the 12th Space Warning Squadron which operates a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System designed to detect and track ICBMs launched against North America.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• In 1818, Sir John Ross’s expedition made first contact with nomadic Polar Eskimos in the area.
• Thule became an Air Force Space Command base in 1982.
• The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.