Nonstop flight route between Alton, Illinois, United States and Kraków / Balice, Poland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between St. Louis Regional Airport (ALN), Alton, Illinois, United States and John Paul II International Airport Kraków–Balice (KRK), Kraków / Balice, Poland would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,962 miles (or 7,986 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 St. Louis Regional Airport and John Paul II International Airport Kraków–Balice, 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 St. Louis Regional Airport and John Paul II International Airport Kraków–Balice. 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 St. Louis Regional Airport (ALN):

• In the spring of 2004 the airport was at the center of a scandal.
• Civic Memorial Airport opened in 1946 and received its current name in 1984.
• The furthest airport from St. Louis Regional Airport (ALN) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,002 miles (17,706 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• St. Louis Regional Airport (ALN) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to St. Louis Regional Airport (ALN) is Lambert–St. Louis International Airport (STL), which is located only 20 miles (32 kilometers) WSW of ALN.
• Because of St. Louis Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 544 feet, planes can take off or land at St. Louis Regional 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.

Facts about John Paul II International Airport Kraków–Balice (KRK):

• Kraków Airport is the second busiest airport in the country after Warsaw Frederic Chopin Airport.
• Because of John Paul II International Airport Kraków–Balice's relatively low elevation of 791 feet, planes can take off or land at John Paul II International Airport Kraków–Balice 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 furthest airport from John Paul II International Airport Kraków–Balice (KRK) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,559 miles (18,603 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• John Paul II International Airport Kraków–Balice (KRK) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "John Paul II International Airport Kraków–Balice", another name for KRK is "Międzynarodowy Port Lotniczy im. Jana Pawła II Kraków–Balice".
• 11 April 2013 saw the beginning of construction works of a new airport terminal, which would be adjacent to the existing old terminal building.
• The closest airport to John Paul II International Airport Kraków–Balice (KRK) is Katowice International Airport (KTW), which is located 41 miles (67 kilometers) NW of KRK.
• On 12 December 2012, Irish low cost carrier Ryanair announced they would be opening their second Polish base in Kraków basing two Boeing 737–800 aircraft at the airport from 31 March 2013, which allows the carrier to increase the number of the routes from Kraków to 31.
• As of September 2013, a new hotel is being built in the nearest area of the airport terminal.
• In 1995 the airport's name was changed from Kraków–Balice Airport to John Paul II International Airport Kraków–Balice, to honor Pope John Paul II, who spent many years of his life in Kraków and had served as Archbishop of Kraków from 1963 until his elevation to the Papacy in 1978.