Nonstop flight route between Alconbury, England, United Kingdom and Thimarafushi, Thaa Atoll, Maldives:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH), Alconbury, England, United Kingdom and Thimarafushi Airport (TMF), Thimarafushi, Thaa Atoll, Maldives would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,403 miles (or 8,695 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 Thimarafushi 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 Thimarafushi 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 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 late 1940/41, an expansion of RAF Alconbury commenced to upgrade its facilities from a satellite airfield to a fully operational one.
• RAF Alconbury is about 0.308 sq mi in area.
• This was the time of the Blitz, when many parts of Britain were being subjected to an almost nightly series of heavy air raids.
• 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.
• The closest airport to RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH) is Cambridge International Airport (CBG), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) ESE of AYH.
• 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 Thimarafushi Airport (TMF):

• The furthest airport from Thimarafushi Airport (TMF) is Seymour Airport (GPS), which is located 11,289 miles (18,168 kilometers) away in Baltra Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador.
• The closest airport to Thimarafushi Airport (TMF) is Kadhdhoo Airport (KDO), which is located 32 miles (52 kilometers) SE of TMF.
• Thimarafushi Airport (TMF) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Thimarafushi Airport's relatively low elevation of 6 feet, planes can take off or land at Thimarafushi 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.
• In addition to being known as "Thimarafushi Airport", another name for TMF is "ތިމަރަފުށި އެއަރޕޯޓް".