Nonstop flight route between Akrotiri, Cyprus and Korla, Xinjiang, China:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Akrotiri (AKT), Akrotiri, Cyprus and Korla Airport (KRL), Korla, Xinjiang, China would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,884 miles (or 4,642 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 RAF Akrotiri and Korla 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 RAF Akrotiri and Korla 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 RAF Akrotiri (AKT):

• Due to the station's relative proximity to the Middle East, it is often used by British allies when needed, such as for casualty reception for Americans after the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing and as a staging post before heading into theatres of combat in the Middle East/Persian Gulf theaters.
• The furthest airport from RAF Akrotiri (AKT) is Rurutu Airport (RUR), which is located 11,556 miles (18,598 kilometers) away in Rurutu, French Polynesia.
• In addition to being known as "RAF Akrotiri", another name for AKT is ""Aki"".
• In August 1970 a detachment of "G" of the Central Intelligence Agency arrived at the airfield with U-2 aircraft to monitor the Egypt/Israel Suez Canal fighting and cease fire.
• The station hosted the main hospital for British Forces Cyprus, The Princess Mary's Hospital, located on Cape Zevgari.
• In August 2013, six RAF Typhoon Fighters were deployed to Akrotiri to defend the base, following possible military responses to of an alleged Syrian government chemical weapons attack.
• The closest airport to RAF Akrotiri (AKT) is Paphos International Airport (PFO), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) WNW of AKT.
• In September 1976 the US U-2 operations were turned over to the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, but the U-2 operation at RAF Akrotiri continued to be called Operating Location OH until September 1980.

Facts about Korla Airport (KRL):

• The closest airport to Korla Airport (KRL) is Kuqa Qiuci Airport (KCA), which is located 163 miles (262 kilometers) W of KRL.
• The furthest airport from Korla Airport (KRL) is Gamboa Airport (WCA), which is located 11,407 miles (18,358 kilometers) away in Castro, Chile.
• Korla Airport (KRL) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Korla Airport", other names for KRL include "库尔勒机场" and "Kù'ěrlè Jīchǎng".