Nonstop flight route between Athens, Greece and Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos" (ATH), Athens, Greece and King Shaka International (DUR), Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,690 miles (or 7,548 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 Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos" and King Shaka International, 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 Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos" and King Shaka International. 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 Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos" (ATH):

• Athens International Airport is the busiest airport in Greece, and in 2013 was the 35th busiest airport in Europe, handling around 12.5 million passengers.
• The airport was opened in March 2001 to replace the now-closed Athens International Airport.
• In addition to being known as "Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos"", another name for ATH is "Διεθνής Αερολιμένας Αθηνών "Ελευθέριος Βενιζέλος"".
• The furthest airport from Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos" (ATH) is Rurutu Airport (RUR), which is located 11,330 miles (18,234 kilometers) away in Rurutu, French Polynesia.
• The closest airport to Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos" (ATH) is Porto Kheli Airport (PKH), which is located 62 miles (100 kilometers) SW of ATH.
• Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos" (ATH) has 2 runways.
• The Satellite Terminal handles non-Schengen flights only.
• Because of Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos"'s relatively low elevation of 308 feet, planes can take off or land at Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos" 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.
• Olympic Air has its head office in Building 57 on the airport property.
• Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos" handled 12,536,038 passengers last year.
• The airport is designed to be modularly extended over the ensuing years in order to accommodate the increase in air travel.

Facts about King Shaka International (DUR):

• King Shaka International (DUR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The final obstacle was a delay in the approval of the project's Environmental Impact Assessment by the South African Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism.
• The project was revived in the late 1990s when the limitations of Durban International Airport became apparent.
• The furthest airport from King Shaka International (DUR) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,682 miles (18,801 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• Despite wide expectations that the airport would be named "King Shaka International Airport", it emerged in October 2009 that the airport needed to undergo a formal naming process.
• Because of King Shaka International's relatively low elevation of 295 feet, planes can take off or land at King Shaka International 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 closest airport to King Shaka International (DUR) is Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) W of DUR.
• One of the objectives of the cargo terminal is to recapture local air freight traffic from JNB.
• As a result, a study into the risks of bird strikes at KSIA was commissioned, with special attention being paid to the Barn Swallows at Mount Moreland.