Nonstop flight route between Fletcher, North Carolina, United States and Catania, Italy:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Asheville Regional Airport (AVL), Fletcher, North Carolina, United States and Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY), Catania, Italy would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,144 miles (or 8,278 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 Asheville Regional Airport and Naval Air Station Sigonella, 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 Asheville Regional Airport and Naval Air Station Sigonella. 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 Asheville Regional Airport (AVL):

• Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) currently has only 1 runway.
• Asheville Regional Airport covers 900 acres and has one runway, 16/34, 8,001 x 150 ft asphalt.
• On July 19, 1967 Piedmont Airlines Flight 22, a Boeing 727, collided in mid-air with a Cessna 310 just south of the airport in Hendersonville, North Carolina.
• The furthest airport from Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,430 miles (18,395 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) is Greenville–Spartanburg International Airport (GSP), which is located 42 miles (67 kilometers) SSE of AVL.
• On October 27, 2004, a Beechcraft Duke crashed about 0.8 of a mile off the departure end of Runway 34 after an apparent right engine failure, killing all 4 people on board.

Facts about Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY):

• The furthest airport from Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,695 miles (18,821 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In addition to being known as "Naval Air Station Sigonella", other names for NSY include "Base aerea di Sigonella" and "NAS Sigonella".
• When there was no room for expansion at Malta, the U.S.
• In the 1980s, Naval Air Facility Sigonella was redesignated as a Naval Air Station.
• From 1987 to 2002, there was a base housing development Villaggio Costanzo which was located in the village of Santa Maria La Stella, in the comune of Aci Sant'Antonio, and approximately 60 minutes from NAS I.
• The closest airport to Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY) is Catania–Fontanarossa Airport (CTA), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) ENE of NSY.
• Because of Naval Air Station Sigonella's relatively low elevation of 79 feet, planes can take off or land at Naval Air Station Sigonella 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.
• Most permanent party military personnel and families are housed in Marinai, located 2 minutes from NAS II and approximately 10–15 minutes from NAS I.
• Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY) has 2 runways.