Nonstop flight route between Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States and Istres, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ann Arbor Municipal Airport (ARB), Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,259 miles (or 6,853 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 Ann Arbor Municipal Airport and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base, 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 Ann Arbor Municipal Airport and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base. 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 Ann Arbor Municipal Airport (ARB):

• The current runaway "requires pilots to make a much steeper descent than recommended by the Federal Aviation Administration" and five planes have overrun the runway since 2000.
• Ann Arbor Municipal Airport (ARB) has 2 runways.
• Because of Ann Arbor Municipal Airport's relatively low elevation of 839 feet, planes can take off or land at Ann Arbor Municipal 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 grass runway intersects the paved runway, and is used during the summertime.
• Built in 1928, Ann Arbor Municipal Airport is a class B-II airport.
• The airport is a general aviation facility with mostly smaller corporate and private aircraft, with no scheduled passenger or cargo flights.
• The closest airport to Ann Arbor Municipal Airport (ARB) is Willow Run Airport (YIP) (YIP), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) E of ARB.
• The furthest airport from Ann Arbor Municipal Airport (ARB) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,266 miles (18,131 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.

Facts about Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE):

• With the end of the war, the Americans used Istres as a staging point between Occupied Germany and Morocco for air transport of personnel back to the United States.
• In addition to being known as "Istres-Le Tubé Air Base", another name for QIE is "Base aérienne 125 Istres (BA 125)Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-17".
• Secondary users occasionally include the United States Air Force, during Allied operations engaging United States and France.
• Built prior to World War II, Istres Air Base was first used by the Armée de l'air during the early part of the war, and after the 1940 Battle of France and the June Armistice with Nazi Germany, became part of the limited air force of the Vichy Government.
• The closest airport to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Marseille Provence Airport (MRS), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) ESE of QIE.
• The airfield was designated by the Americans as Istres/Le Tubé Airfield or Advanced Landing Ground Y-17.
• The furthest airport from Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (meaning Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,364 miles (19,898 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The main USAAF use of Istres was by the 64th Troop Carrier Group, which operated C-47 Skytrain transports from the airfield from September to November 1944.
• Because of Istres-Le Tubé Air Base's relatively low elevation of 162 feet, planes can take off or land at Istres-Le Tubé Air Base 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.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.