Nonstop flight route between Mount Gambier, Australia and St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Mount Gambier Airport (MGB), Mount Gambier, Australia and MoD St Athan (DGX), St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 10,466 miles (or 16,843 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 Mount Gambier Airport and MoD St Athan, 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 Mount Gambier Airport and MoD St Athan. 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 Mount Gambier Airport (MGB):

• Mount Gambier Airport (MGB) has 3 runways.
• The closest airport to Mount Gambier Airport (MGB) is Portland Airport (PTJ), which is located 54 miles (88 kilometers) SE of MGB.
• On 29 May 1947 the airport was handed over to the Department of Civil Aviation and this saw the return of regular public transport flights to the region with Ansett Airways announcing that a daily service would operate between Mount Gambier and Melbourne.
• Mount Gambier Airport handled 92,261 passengers last year.
• In July 1939 the Federal Government purchased the aerodrome from its civilian owners and commenced the construction of a Royal Australian Air Force base which was to house the No.
• Because of Mount Gambier Airport's relatively low elevation of 212 feet, planes can take off or land at Mount Gambier 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 furthest airport from Mount Gambier Airport (MGB) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is located 11,985 miles (19,288 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
• It is located on the Riddoch Highway in Wandilo about 5 nautical miles north of Mount Gambier.

Facts about MoD St Athan (DGX):

• During the war a dummy airfield was built using wood and cardboard a few miles west of the original airfield and successful efforts were made to hide the proper field.
• Because of MoD St Athan's relatively low elevation of 163 feet, planes can take off or land at MoD St Athan 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.
• RAF St Athan has been used to house a number of army units throughout its life and, in 2003, the 1st Battalion, Welsh Guards moved from Aldershot to St Athan - the first time they have been based in Wales since they were formed in 1915.
• The furthest airport from MoD St Athan (DGX) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,960 miles (19,248 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to MoD St Athan (DGX) is Cardiff Airport (CWL), which is located only 4 miles (6 kilometers) E of DGX.
• MoD St Athan (DGX) currently has only 1 runway.
• On 26 August 1993 an ATC civilian instructor was seriously injured and the RAF Volunteer Reserve pilot, Group Captain Roger Sweatman, was killed when their Chipmunk trainer, on an air experience flight, crashed after encountering difficulties during a simulated emergency low-height manoeuvre on take-off.
• In March 2004, however, DARA announced the loss of 550 jobs at St Athan as part of streamlining to make DARA more efficient and better able to compete with the private sector for lucrative aircraft repair contracts, but also because they lost out to a direct RAF bid for a contract to upgrade the air force's fleet of ageing Harrier jump jet aircraft.