Nonstop flight route between Wellington, New Zealand and Tehran, Iran:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wellington International Airport (WLG), Wellington, New Zealand and Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport (IKA), Tehran, Iran would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,411 miles (or 15,145 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 Wellington International Airport and Tehran Imam Khomeini International 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 Wellington International Airport and Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport. 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 Wellington International Airport (WLG):

• Wellington International Airport (WLG) currently has only 1 runway.
• Wellington International Airport is an international airport located in the suburb of Rongotai in Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand.
• The furthest airport from Wellington International Airport (WLG) is Salamanca-Matacán Airport (SLM), which is nearly antipodal to Wellington International Airport (meaning Wellington International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Salamanca-Matacán Airport), and is located 12,406 miles (19,966 kilometers) away in Salamanca, Spain.
• A proposal to relocate the terminal from the east side to the site of the Miramar Golf Course was put forward in 1956.
• The closest airport to Wellington International Airport (WLG) is Kapiti Coast Airport (PPQ), which is located 31 miles (49 kilometers) NNE of WLG.
• According to WIAL in 2009, the forthcoming Boeing 787 and Airbus A350 were originally predicted to have improved runway performance over existing long haul aircraft, opening up the possibility of direct air links to Asia and the Americas if commercially viable.
• In 1991, the airport released plans to widen the taxiway to CAA Code D & E specifications and acquire extra space, which were abandoned after protests from local residents.
• The airport, in addition to linking many New Zealand destinations with national and regional carriers, also has links to major cities in eastern Australia.
• Because of Wellington International Airport's relatively low elevation of 42 feet, planes can take off or land at Wellington 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.

Facts about Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport (IKA):

• After the Iranian Revolution, the project was abandoned until the government of Iran decided to design and build the airport using local know-how.
• However, on 8 May, a few hours after the opening of airport, the Revolutionary Guards of the Iranian Armed Forces closed it, citing security fears over the use of foreigners in the running of the airport.
• Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport (IKA) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport", another name for IKA is "فرودگاه امام خمینی".
• Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport handled 4,986,477 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport (IKA) is Totegegie Airport (GMR), which is located 11,511 miles (18,525 kilometers) away in Mangareva, Gambier Islands, French Polynesia.
• TAV officials were ordered to withdraw their personnel and equipment from the airport on 7 May 2004, and operations were handed over to Iran Air.
• There were numerous issues surrounding the construction of the airport including the supply of fuel to the new airport, and a delay in signing a deal with the Iranian oil ministry forced a delay in the opening of the airport until 8 May 2004.
• The airport reopened on 13 May, as deputy head of Iran's Joint Chiefs of staff Brigadier-General Alireza Afshar stated "because foreign companies will no longer be in charge of the airport's operation, security obstacles are removed."
• About 3 trillion rials have been sought for completing Phase 1 of Imam Khomeini International Airport, in the next Iranian year to March 2009, announced managing director of the State Airports Company, Asghar Ketabchi.
• The closest airport to Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport (IKA) is Mehrabad Airport (THR), which is located 21 miles (34 kilometers) NNE of IKA.
• IKA has obtained the international certificate of Integrated Management System.
• On 11 May, in a meeting of the Turkish Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ugur Ziyal and Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi, the Turkish expressed uneasiness about the actions of the Iranian armed forces.