Nonstop flight route between Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga and Melbourne, Victoria, Australia:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from TBU to MEL:
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- About this route
- TBU Airport Information
- MEL Airport Information
- Facts about TBU
- Facts about MEL
- Map of Nearest Airports to TBU
- List of Nearest Airports to TBU
- Map of Furthest Airports from TBU
- List of Furthest Airports from TBU
- Map of Nearest Airports to MEL
- List of Nearest Airports to MEL
- Map of Furthest Airports from MEL
- List of Furthest Airports from MEL
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU), Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga and Melbourne Airport (MEL), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,635 miles (or 4,241 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 Fuaʻamotu International Airport and Melbourne Airport, 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 Fuaʻamotu International Airport and Melbourne Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | TBU / NFTF |
Airport Name: | Fuaʻamotu International Airport |
Location: | Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga |
GPS Coordinates: | 21°14'27"S by 175°8'57"W |
Area Served: | Nukuʻalofa, Tonga |
Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Civil Aviation |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 126 feet (38 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from TBU |
More Information: | TBU Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MEL / YMML |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 37°40'23"S by 144°50'35"E |
Area Served: | Melbourne |
Operator/Owner: | Australia Pacific Airports Corporation Limited |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 434 feet (132 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from MEL |
More Information: | MEL Maps & Info |
Facts about Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU):
- Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) has 2 runways.
- Until August 2006, Peau Vavaʻu used a DC-3 on their domestic routes, but this has recently been replaced with a Jetstream 41.
- Because of Fuaʻamotu International Airport's relatively low elevation of 126 feet, planes can take off or land at Fuaʻamotu International 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.
- It is the strength of the runway rather than the length that restricts operations from Fuaʻamotu.
- Fuaʻamotu International Airport is equipped with VOR/DME and NDB navigational facilities.
- The closest airport to Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) is Lifuka Island Airport (HPA), which is located 114 miles (183 kilometers) NNE of TBU.
- Fuaʻamotu was originally built in 1942 by a civilian contractor for the US Army.
- The furthest airport from Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) is Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport (TMR), which is nearly antipodal to Fuaʻamotu International Airport (meaning Fuaʻamotu International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport), and is located 12,322 miles (19,830 kilometers) away in Tamanrasset, Algeria.
Facts about Melbourne Airport (MEL):
- The Southern Freighter Apron has five dedicated freighter parking positions which host 21 dedicated freighter operations a week.
- In addition to being known as "Melbourne Airport", another name for MEL is "Tullamarine Airport".
- Melbourne Airport (MEL) has 2 runways.
- The closest airport to Melbourne Airport (MEL) is Essendon Airport (MEB), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) SE of MEL.
- In late 1989, Federal Airports Corporation Inspector A.
- In May 1959 it was announced that a new airport would be built at Tullamarine, with Prime Minister Robert Menzies announcing on 27 November 1962 a five-year plan to provide Melbourne with a A$45 million "jetport" by 1967.
- Melbourne Airport handled 2,998,000 passengers last year.
- Melbourne Airport, also known as Tullamarine Airport, is the primary airport serving the city of Melbourne, and the second busiest airport in Australia.
- Expansion of carparks has also continued with a $40 million project commenced in 2004, doubling the size of the short term carpark with the addition of 2,500 spaces over six levels, along with 1,200 new spaces added to the 5,000 already available in the long term carpark.
- Because of Melbourne Airport's relatively low elevation of 434 feet, planes can take off or land at Melbourne 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 Melbourne Airport (MEL) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is nearly antipodal to Melbourne Airport (meaning Melbourne Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Flores Airport), and is located 12,187 miles (19,613 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
- Opened with Melbourne Airport in 1970 for Trans Australia Airlines, the terminal passed to Qantas in 1992 when they acquired the airline.