Nonstop flight route between Apia, Upolu Island, Samoa and Falkland Islands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Faleolo International Airport (APW), Apia, Upolu Island, Samoa and RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN), Falkland Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,424 miles (or 10,339 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 Faleolo International Airport and RAF Mount Pleasant, 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 Faleolo International Airport and RAF Mount Pleasant. 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 Faleolo International Airport (APW):

• Faleolo Tower has some jurisdiction over the airspace of American Samoa and Tonga as well as its own airspace.
• The closest airport to Faleolo International Airport (APW) is Maota (Salelologa) Airport (MXS), which is located only 18 miles (29 kilometers) WNW of APW.
• Faleolo International Airport is an airport located 40 kilometres west of Apia, the capital of Samoa.
• The airport resides at an elevation of 58 feet above mean sea level.
• Until 1984, Faleolo could not accommodate jets larger than a Boeing 737.
• Faleolo International Airport (APW) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Faleolo International Airport (APW) is Maradi Airport (MFQ), which is nearly antipodal to Faleolo International Airport (meaning Faleolo International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Maradi Airport), and is located 12,373 miles (19,913 kilometers) away in Maradi, Niger.
• Because of Faleolo International Airport's relatively low elevation of 58 feet, planes can take off or land at Faleolo 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.

Facts about RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN):

• The furthest airport from RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Mohe Gulian Airport (OHE), which is nearly antipodal to RAF Mount Pleasant (meaning RAF Mount Pleasant is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mohe Gulian Airport), and is located 12,353 miles (19,879 kilometers) away in Mohe, Heilongjiang, China.
• Flights are planned to Saint Helena when a new airport there opens in 2016.
• The closest airport to RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Port Stanley Airport (PSY), which is located 30 miles (49 kilometers) ENE of MPN.
• A flight of Westland Sea King helicopters for support and search and rescue has been located at Mount Pleasant since November 2007.
• The British government felt that Stanley airfield was not the best option for a large, permanent station and decided to construct a new RAF station and make it the centrepiece of considerably strengthened air defences for the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.
• Using the IATA airport code MPN, RAF Mount Pleasant also acts as the Falkland Islands' only international airport, along with its military role.