Nonstop flight route between Ramstein, Germany and Istres, France:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from RMS to QIE:
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- About this route
- RMS Airport Information
- QIE Airport Information
- Facts about RMS
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- List of Furthest Airports from RMS
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About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Ramstein Air Base (RMS), Ramstein, Germany and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 428 miles (or 689 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 relatively short distance between Ramstein Air Base and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | RMS / ETAR |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Ramstein, Germany |
GPS Coordinates: | 49°26'38"N by 7°36'8"E |
Operator/Owner: | United States |
View all routes: | Routes from RMS |
More Information: | RMS Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | QIE / LFMI |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Istres, France |
GPS Coordinates: | 43°31'27"N by 4°56'30"E |
Operator/Owner: | Government of France |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 162 feet (49 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from QIE |
More Information: | QIE Maps & Info |
Facts about Ramstein Air Base (RMS):
- In addition to being known as "Ramstein Air Base", another name for RMS is "Ramstein AB".
- Construction of the modern USAF base near Kaiserslautern began in April 1948 under the provisions of a Franco-American reciprocal agreement.
- The closest airport to Ramstein Air Base (RMS) is Sembach KaserneSembach Air Base (SEX), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) ENE of RMS.
- From 2004 to 2006, Ramstein Air Base underwent an extensive expansion with a major construction project – including an all-new airport terminal, among other new facilities, through the so-called Rhein-Main Transition Program which was initiated in support of the total closure of Rhein-Main Air Base on 30 December 2005 and transferring all its former capacities to Ramstein Air Base and Spangdahlem Air Base.
- Today, the base is home to the Allied Air Command, which is responsible to Joint Force Command Brunssum which is the only and main NATO command unit on Ramstein AB.
- The furthest airport from Ramstein Air Base (RMS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Ramstein Air Base (meaning Ramstein Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,003 miles (19,316 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- One legacy of the two separate air bases is that the north side of Ramstein retained a separate APO from the south side.
Facts about Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE):
- On 31 March 1992, a Boeing 707 of Kabo Air, a Nigerian company, made an emergency landing at Istres after engines 3 and 4 had separated from the wing in turbulence at 35,000 feet.
- The furthest airport from Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (meaning Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,364 miles (19,898 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
- The airfield was designated by the Americans as Istres/Le Tubé Airfield or Advanced Landing Ground Y-17.
- The closest airport to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Marseille Provence Airport (MRS), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) ESE of QIE.
- Because of Istres-Le Tubé Air Base's relatively low elevation of 162 feet, planes can take off or land at Istres-Le Tubé Air Base 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.
- Secondary users occasionally include the United States Air Force, during Allied operations engaging United States and France.
- In addition to being known as "Istres-Le Tubé Air Base", another name for QIE is "Base aérienne 125 Istres (BA 125)Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-17".
- Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
- The main USAAF use of Istres was by the 64th Troop Carrier Group, which operated C-47 Skytrain transports from the airfield from September to November 1944.