Nonstop flight route between Alconbury, England, United Kingdom and Baghdad, Iraq:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH), Alconbury, England, United Kingdom and Baghdad International Airport (SDA), Baghdad, Iraq would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,555 miles (or 4,113 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 Baghdad International 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 Baghdad International 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):

• 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 closest airport to RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH) is Cambridge International Airport (CBG), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) ESE of AYH.
• 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.
• Royal Air Force Alconbury or RAF Alconbury is an active Royal Air Force station in the United Kingdom, located in Huntingdon, England.
• RAF Alconbury is also the home of the 501st Combat Support Wing.
• In addition, two underground gasoline storage facilities, with a total capacity of 216,000 gallons were situated at points adjacent to the perimeter track, but at some distance from the explosive storage area.
• During the Second World War, it was controlled by the USAAF Eighth Air Force, from 23 February 1944 to 7 August 1945 the United States Strategic Air Forces in Europe, thereafter the United States Air Forces in Europe,

Facts about Baghdad International Airport (SDA):

• The furthest airport from Baghdad International Airport (SDA) is Totegegie Airport (GMR), which is located 11,732 miles (18,880 kilometers) away in Mangareva, Gambier Islands, French Polynesia.
• Baghdad International Airport (SDA) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Baghdad International Airport (SDA) is Baghdad International Airport (BGW), which is located only 0 mile (0 kilometer) N of SDA.
• Most of Baghdad's civil flights stopped in 1991, when the United Nations imposed restrictions on Iraq after the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait during the Persian Gulf War.
• In addition to being known as "Baghdad International Airport", other names for SDA include "مطار بغداد الدولي", "Matar Baġdād ad-Dowaly" and "BGW".
• On 18 May 2010, plans were unveiled for an expansion of Baghdad International Airport, which will double its capacity to 15 million passengers per year.
• Because of Baghdad International Airport's relatively low elevation of 114 feet, planes can take off or land at Baghdad International 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.