Nonstop flight route between Alconbury, England, United Kingdom and Orlando, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH), Alconbury, England, United Kingdom and Orlando Executive Airport (ORL), Orlando, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,320 miles (or 6,953 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 Orlando Executive 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 Orlando Executive 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):

• In late 1940/41, an expansion of RAF Alconbury commenced to upgrade its facilities from a satellite airfield to a fully operational one.
• The closest airport to RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH) is Cambridge International Airport (CBG), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) ESE of AYH.
• RAF Alconbury is also the home of the 501st Combat Support Wing.
• 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.
• A total of 67 bombers had been lost in RAF Bomber Command operations flown from Alconbury, eight were Blenheims and 59 Wellingtons.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Orlando Executive Airport (ORL):

• Orlando Executive Airport (ORL) has 2 runways.
• By the early 1960s development around the airport had made airport expansion unlikely.
• The closest airport to Orlando Executive Airport (ORL) is Orlando International Airport (MCO), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) S of ORL.
• The furthest airport from Orlando Executive Airport (ORL) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,503 miles (18,513 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• In 1943 the AAFSAT began training units in Night Fighter operations.
• Executive Airport covers 1,055 acres at an elevation of 113 feet above mean sea level.
• Because of Orlando Executive Airport's relatively low elevation of 113 feet, planes can take off or land at Orlando Executive 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.