Nonstop flight route between Alconbury, England, United Kingdom and Bloomington, Minnesota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH), Alconbury, England, United Kingdom and Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Wold–Chamberlain Airport (MSP), Bloomington, Minnesota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,978 miles (or 6,402 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 Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Wold–Chamberlain 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 Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Wold–Chamberlain 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):

• The host unit at RAF Alconbury is the 423rd Air Base Group which supplies host unit services for Alconbury as well as RAF Molesworth.
• The closest airport to RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH) is Cambridge International Airport (CBG), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) ESE of AYH.
• In 1937, Royal Air Force Bomber Command was drawing up plans for dispersal of their aircraft in the event of air raids on its stations.
• In the spring of 1938, the Air Ministry acquired about 150 acres of open meadowland at Alconbury Hill, Huntingdonshire, expressly for use as a satellite airfield.
• 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 423 ABG command section and orderly room are located at Alconbury as are many of the support units and recreational facilities for the area.
• Opened in 1938, it is currently a non-flying facility under the control of the United States Air Force.
• Also in 1942, to bring the station up to Class A airfield standards, the runways were extended to 2,000 yards, and 1,400 yards, with 26 additional hardstands along with the taxiways altered.

Facts about Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Wold–Chamberlain Airport (MSP):

• In terms of passengers, Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport is the 17th busiest airport in the United States and 41st busiest airport in the world in 2012.
• Starting in 2000, MSP switched to lettered concourses, which has become standard practice at airports around the world.
• Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Wold–Chamberlain Airport handled 33,897,335 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Wold–Chamberlain Airport (MSP) is St. Paul Downtown Airport (STP), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) ENE of MSP.
• Icelandair started service to Minneapolis-St.
• It is the third-largest hub airport for Delta Air Lines and Delta Connection partners Compass Airlines and Endeavor Air.
• Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport is a joint civil-military public use international airport.
• In 2004, Northwest Airlines, which is now Delta Air Lines, proposed expanding the Lindbergh Terminal 1 to accommodate growing flight operations in a plan known as the MSP 2020 Vision.
• Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Wold–Chamberlain Airport (MSP) has 4 runways.
• MSP was the main base for Northwest Airlines starting in 1926 and became the main base of regional carrier North Central Airlines in 1952.
• Because of Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Wold–Chamberlain Airport's relatively low elevation of 841 feet, planes can take off or land at Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Wold–Chamberlain 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 furthest airport from Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport Wold–Chamberlain Airport (MSP) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,758 miles (17,313 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.