Nonstop flight route between Altay, Xinjiang, China and Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Altay Airport (AAT), Altay, Xinjiang, China and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,384 miles (or 10,273 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 Altay Airport and Ronald Reagan Washington National 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 Altay Airport and Ronald Reagan Washington National 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 Altay Airport (AAT):

• In addition to being known as "Altay Airport", other names for AAT include "阿勒泰机场" and "Ālètài Jīchǎng".
• Altay Airport (AAT) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Altay Airport (AAT) is Cochrane Airfield (LGR), which is located 11,536 miles (18,566 kilometers) away in Cochrane, Chile.
• The closest airport to Altay Airport (AAT) is Kanas Airport (KJI), which is located 60 miles (96 kilometers) WNW of AAT.

Facts about Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA):

• The closest airport to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is Bolling Air Force Base (BOF), which is located only 1 miles (2 kilometers) ESE of DCA.
• Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is a public airport 3 miles south of downtown Washington, D.C., in Arlington County, Virginia.
• Because of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Ronald Reagan Washington National 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.
• In 1984 Secretary of Transportation Elizabeth Dole appointed a commission to study transferring National and Dulles Airports from the Federal Aviation Administration to a local entity, which could use airport revenues to finance improvements.
• The furthest airport from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,682 miles (18,800 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• With the addition of more flights and limited space in the aging main terminal, the airport began an extensive renovation and expansion in the 1990s.
• Despite the expansions, efforts have been made to restrict the growth of the airport.
• Other than 40 slot exemptions, flights into and out of DCA are not allowed to exceed 1,250 statute miles in any direction nonstop, in an effort to send air traffic to the larger but more distant Washington Dulles International Airport.
• Until 1999, Runways 1/19 and 4/22 were designated 18/36 and 3/21.
• In 1999, Senator John McCain of Arizona introduced legislation to remove the 1,250-statute-mile restriction, infuriating some local residents concerned about noise and traffic from increased service by larger, long-haul aircraft.
• Prior to the September 11 attacks in 2001, the notable security measure was the southbound approach into the airport.
• Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) has 3 runways.