Nonstop flight route between Atkamba, Papua New Guinea and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Atkamba Airport (ABP), Atkamba, Papua New Guinea and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,642 miles (or 13,907 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 Atkamba Airport and RAF Fairford, 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 Atkamba Airport and RAF Fairford. 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 Atkamba Airport (ABP):

• Atkamba Airport (ABP) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Atkamba Airport's relatively low elevation of 150 feet, planes can take off or land at Atkamba 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 closest airport to Atkamba Airport (ABP) is Biangabip Airport (BPK), which is located 58 miles (93 kilometers) NE of ABP.
• The furthest airport from Atkamba Airport (ABP) is Parnaíba–Prefeito Dr. João Silva Filho International Airport (PHB), which is located 11,788 miles (18,970 kilometers) away in Parnaiba, Piaui, Brazil.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• RAF Fairford was the only TransOceanic Abort Landing site for NASA's Space Shuttle in the UK.
• In the early years of the Cold War the British and American governments reached an agreement under which elements of the USAF Strategic Air Command would be based in the UK.
• Operations staff and maintenance personnel were permanently assigned, but aircraft, aircrews and crew chiefs were temporarily assigned to the 11th Strategic Group for the European Tanker Task Force on rotation.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.
• RAF Fairford was constructed in 1944 to serve as an airfield for British and American troop carriers and gliders for the D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II.