Nonstop flight route between Ailinglaplap Atoll, Marshall Islands and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ailinglaplap Atoll (AIP), Ailinglaplap Atoll, Marshall Islands and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,316 miles (or 13,383 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 Ailinglaplap Atoll 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 Ailinglaplap Atoll 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 Ailinglaplap Atoll (AIP):

• "Ailinglaplap" translates as "greatest atoll" + ļapļap ), because the greatest legends of the Marshallese people were created there.
• The furthest airport from Ailinglaplap Atoll (AIP) is RAF Ascension (ASI), which is nearly antipodal to Ailinglaplap Atoll (meaning Ailinglaplap Atoll is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from RAF Ascension), and is located 12,218 miles (19,663 kilometers) away in Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena.
• The closest airport to Ailinglaplap Atoll (AIP) is Woja Airport (WJA), which is located only 14 miles (23 kilometers) WNW of AIP.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• RAF Fairford was the only TransOceanic Abort Landing site for NASA's Space Shuttle in the UK.
• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
• 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.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• 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.