Nonstop flight route between Fletcher, North Carolina, United States and Pituffik, Greenland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Asheville Regional Airport (AVL), Fletcher, North Carolina, United States and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,872 miles (or 4,623 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 Thule 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 Asheville Regional Airport and Thule 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 Asheville Regional Airport (AVL):

• 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.
• 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.
• The closest airport to Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) is Greenville–Spartanburg International Airport (GSP), which is located 42 miles (67 kilometers) SSE of AVL.
• Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):

• In 1818, Sir John Ross’s expedition made first contact with nomadic Polar Eskimos in the area.
• In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
• In 1949, Denmark joined NATO and abandoned its attempt to remove the United States bases.
• The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
• A cluster of huts known as Pituffik stood on the wide plain where the base was built in 1951.
• Originally established as a Strategic Air Command installation, Thule would periodically serve as a dispersal base for B-36 Peacemaker and B-47 Stratojet aircraft during the 1950s, as well as providing an ideal site to test the operability and maintainability of these weapon systems in extreme cold weather.
• In 1959, the airbase was the main staging point for the construction of Camp Century, some 150 mi from the base.
• The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
• The ratification of the treaty in 1951 did not change much, except that the Danish national flag Dannebrog must be side by side with Stars and Stripes on the base.
• In 1961, a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System radar was constructed at "J-Site," 21 km northeast of main base.