Nonstop flight route between Watertown, South Dakota, United States and Alta, Norway:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Watertown Regional Airport (ATY), Watertown, South Dakota, United States and Alta Airport (ALF), Alta, Norway would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,959 miles (or 6,372 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 Watertown Regional Airport and Alta 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 Watertown Regional Airport and Alta 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 Watertown Regional Airport (ATY):

• In addition to being known as "Watertown Regional Airport", another name for ATY is "Watertown Army Airfield".
• B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator units underwent advanced training before going overseas.
• The closest airport to Watertown Regional Airport (ATY) is Brookings Regional Airport (BKX), which is located 45 miles (73 kilometers) SSE of ATY.
• The furthest airport from Watertown Regional Airport (ATY) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,571 miles (17,013 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Watertown Regional Airport (ATY) has 2 runways.

Facts about Alta Airport (ALF):

• SAS bought Braathens in 2001, resulting in the latter taking over the service to Oslo starting on 1 April 2002.
• Alta Airport is served by three scheduled airlines and two charter airlines, providing services to eleven destinations, including two abroad.
• Alta Airport (ALF) currently has only 1 runway.
• A proposal by a consultant company, ordered by the Ministry of Transport and Communications in 2011, suggested that starting in 2013 the subsidized routes in Finnmark should follow a coastal route, leaving those to Kirkenes and the county capital of Vadsø as the only subsidized routes remaining at Alta.
• Alta Airport handled 353,051 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Alta Airport (ALF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,502 miles (16,901 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Alta Airport (ALF) is Lakselv Airport, Banak (LKL), which is located 38 miles (62 kilometers) E of ALF.
• The location in Elvebakken was somewhat controversial in Alta, especially as the airport would be located so close to the town center, potentially causing noise pollution.
• In addition to being known as "Alta Airport", another name for ALF is "Alta lufthavn".
• Because of Alta Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Alta 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.