Nonstop flight route between Alta, Norway and Hambantota, Sri Lanka:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Alta Airport (ALF), Alta, Norway and Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI), Hambantota, Sri Lanka would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,076 miles (or 8,169 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 Alta Airport and Mattala Rajapaksa 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 Alta Airport and Mattala Rajapaksa 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 Alta Airport (ALF):

• SAS Commuter was established in 1988 and started operations in Northern Norway in May 1990, making Alta its central hub for Finnmark.
• Plans for expanding the 1,670-square-meter terminal facilities were first articulated by the Civil Airport Administration in the 1990s.
• A proposal by a consultant company, ordered by the Ministry of Transport and Communications in 2011, suggested that starting in 2013 the subsidized routes in Finnmark should follow a coastal route, leaving those to Kirkenes and the county capital of Vadsø as the only subsidized routes remaining at Alta.
• The closest airport to Alta Airport (ALF) is Lakselv Airport, Banak (LKL), which is located 38 miles (62 kilometers) E of ALF.
• The furthest airport from Alta Airport (ALF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,502 miles (16,901 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Alta Airport (ALF) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Alta Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Alta 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.
• Alta Airport handled 353,051 passengers last year.
• SAS bought Braathens in 2001, resulting in the latter taking over the service to Oslo starting on 1 April 2002.
• In addition to being known as "Alta Airport", another name for ALF is "Alta lufthavn".
• However, no progress was made with the airfield for over a decade.

Facts about Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI):

• A new aerodrome designed to meet the ICAO specification for code 4F is to be built.
• The terminal building will be of area 12,000m2 with the capacity to handle 1,000,000 passengers per annum.
• Because of Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport's relatively low elevation of 157 feet, planes can take off or land at Mattala Rajapaksa 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.
• In addition to being known as "Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport", another name for HRI is "මත්තල රාජපක්ෂ ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළமத்தல ராஜபக்ஷ பன்னாட்டு விமான நிலையம்".
• Domestic carriers Helitours and Cinnamon Air offer charter flights that connect the airport with Ratmalana Airport and Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo.
• On March 2013, it was reported that certifications of compliance and certification of aerodrome was awarded to the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport.
• The furthest airport from Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,719 miles (18,860 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (HRI) is Weerawila Airport (WRZ), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) ESE of HRI.