Nonstop flight route between Alton, Illinois, United States and Manston, Kent, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between St. Louis Regional Airport (ALN), Alton, Illinois, United States and Manston Airport (MSE), Manston, Kent, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,243 miles (or 6,829 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 Manston 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 St. Louis Regional Airport and Manston 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 St. Louis Regional Airport (ALN):

• 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.
• 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.
• In the spring of 2004 the airport was at the center of a scandal.
• Today a fair amount of air traffic and the Direct TV blimp comes for Cardinals playoffs, as Lambert's airport cannot take the blimp.

Facts about Manston Airport (MSE):

• Charter flights were operated from Manston by Seguro Travel Limited, operating as "Kent Escapes".
• In the winter of 1915–1916, early aircraft began to use the open farmlands at Manston as a site for emergency landings.
• Manston Airport handled 8,595 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Manston Airport (MSE) is Lympne Airport (LYM), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) SW of MSE.
• Manston Airport (MSE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Manston Airport (MSE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,906 miles (19,162 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• After the plan was published, the Ministry of Defence announced its intention to sell off RAF Manston.
• Because of Manston Airport's relatively low elevation of 178 feet, planes can take off or land at Manston 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.
• On 26 July 2005 all EUjet operations were suspended, along with all non-freight operations at the airport, owing to financial difficulties with the airport and airline's owner, PlaneStation.
• On 8 March 2012 Infratil announced the decision to dispose of their European airport operations, putting Kent International and Glasgow-Prestwick Airports up for sale.