Nonstop flight route between Falkland Islands and Chita, Russia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN), Falkland Islands and Chita Kadala (HTA), Chita, Russia would travel a Great Circle distance of 12,085 miles (or 19,449 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 RAF Mount Pleasant and Chita Kadala, 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 RAF Mount Pleasant and Chita Kadala. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

The distance between MPN and HTA makes them almost exactly antipodal (the exact opposite side of the world) to each other. Nonstop flights between RAF Mount Pleasant and Chita Kadala would be very impractical for the airlines, because only a lightly loaded Boeing 777-200LR would be able to make the trip. Since airlines need to be able to take as many people and cargo as possible in order to make a profit, the odds of ever seeing a nonstop flight between MPN and HTA are slim to none. However, you'll still be able to get from Falkland Islands and Chita, Russia by taking some connecting flights!

Did you know that one full circling of the Earth (measuring from the equator) is about 24,901.5 miles (or 40,075 kilometers), which means if you were 12,450 miles from any given point on the planet, the distance back to your starting point would be about the same -- in any direction! The same can be said for a nonstop flight between MPN and HTA!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN):

• After the surrender of the Argentine ground forces on the islands, the British still faced the problem of potential Argentine air attacks from Argentina, so an aircraft carrier had to remain on station to guard the islands with its squadron of Sea Harriers until the local airfield was prepared for jet aircraft.
• Flights are planned to Saint Helena when a new airport there opens in 2016.
• Mount Pleasant was opened by Prince Andrew on 12 May 1985, becoming fully operational the following year.
• The furthest airport from RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Mohe Gulian Airport (OHE), which is nearly antipodal to RAF Mount Pleasant (meaning RAF Mount Pleasant is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mohe Gulian Airport), and is located 12,353 miles (19,879 kilometers) away in Mohe, Heilongjiang, China.
• A flight of Westland Sea King helicopters for support and search and rescue has been located at Mount Pleasant since November 2007.
• Using the IATA airport code MPN, RAF Mount Pleasant also acts as the Falkland Islands' only international airport, along with its military role.
• The closest airport to RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Port Stanley Airport (PSY), which is located 30 miles (49 kilometers) ENE of MPN.

Facts about Chita Kadala (HTA):

• Chita Kadala (HTA) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Chita Kadala (HTA) is Piloto Civil Norberto Fernández International Airport (RGL), which is nearly antipodal to Chita Kadala (meaning Chita Kadala is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Piloto Civil Norberto Fernández International Airport), and is located 12,321 miles (19,829 kilometers) away in Río Gallegos, Santa Cruz, Argentina.
• The closest airport to Chita Kadala (HTA) is Baikal International Airport (UUD), which is located 250 miles (403 kilometers) W of HTA.