Nonstop flight route between Alconbury, England, United Kingdom and Komatsu, Ishikawa, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH), Alconbury, England, United Kingdom and Komatsu Airport (KMQ), Komatsu, Ishikawa, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,772 miles (or 9,289 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 RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 and Komatsu 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 RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 and Komatsu 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 RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH):

• Squadrons 15 and 40 converted from Battles to Bristol Blenheim bombers, but did not take part in bombing raids with the new type until the German Blitzkrieg was unleashed in May 1940.
• RAF Alconbury and RAF Molesworth are the last Second World War-era Eighth Air Force bases in Britain that are still actively in use and controlled by the United States Air Force.
• The furthest airport from RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,821 miles (19,024 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH) is Cambridge International Airport (CBG), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) ESE of AYH.
• This was the time of the Blitz, when many parts of Britain were being subjected to an almost nightly series of heavy air raids.
• The first American Eighth Air Force unit to take residence at RAF Alconbury was the 93d Bombardment Group, known as the "Travelling Circus" from Fort Myers AAF, Florida on 7 September 1942.
• The technical site on the north-west side was expanded where a single T2 hangar was also erected.
• Satellite bases were considered one answer to this threat – a landing ground within reasonable road travel distance of the parent airfield to which aircraft could be diverted if the home station was bombed or likely to be attacked.

Facts about Komatsu Airport (KMQ):

• The furthest airport from Komatsu Airport (KMQ) is Rio Grande Regional Airport (RIG), which is located 11,864 miles (19,093 kilometers) away in Rio Grande, Brazil.
• The closest airport to Komatsu Airport (KMQ) is Fukui Airport (FKJ), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) SSW of KMQ.
• In addition to being known as "Komatsu Airport", other names for KMQ include "小松飛行場" and "Komatsu Hikōjō".
• The base was handed over to the Japan Air Self-Defense Force in 1958 and designated as a jet fighter base in 1960.
• Komatsu Airport (KMQ) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Komatsu Airport's relatively low elevation of 22 feet, planes can take off or land at Komatsu 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 Japan Air Self-Defense Force Komatsu Base shares the runway with civil aviation.