Nonstop flight route between Bossier City, Louisiana, United States and Melbourne, Victoria, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Barksdale Air Force Base (BAD), Bossier City, Louisiana, United States and Essendon Airport (MEB), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,161 miles (or 14,743 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 Barksdale Air Force Base and Essendon 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 Barksdale Air Force Base and Essendon 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 Barksdale Air Force Base (BAD):

• As early as 1924, the citizens of Shreveport became interested in hosting a military flying field.
• In addition to being known as "Barksdale Air Force Base", another name for BAD is "Barksdale AFB".
• Barksdale AFB was established in 1932 as Barksdale Field and is named for World War I aviator and test pilot Lieutenant Eugene Hoy Barksdale.
• The closest airport to Barksdale Air Force Base (BAD) is Shreveport Downtown Airport (DTN), which is located only 5 miles (9 kilometers) WNW of BAD.
• With the arrival of the 376th Bomb wing in October 1951, the decision was made to reassign the 91st.
• The furthest airport from Barksdale Air Force Base (BAD) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 10,884 miles (17,516 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• The name of the airfield was changed to Barksdale Air Force Base on 13 February 1948, concurrent with the establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate military branch.
• Barksdale Field was renamed Barksdale Air Force Base on 13 January 1948, with the designation of the United States Air Force as a separate service in 1947.
• Also during World War II Barksdale played host to the major contingent of the Free French Air Forces and Nationalist Chinese aircrews.

Facts about Essendon Airport (MEB):

• The 1920s period saw the great pioneering aviation flights of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith who visited the airport on several occasions.
• The airfield itself also has undergone a major upgrade with the installation of lighting and signage systems to bring the airport to International Civil Aviation Organization standards.
• Essendon Airport (MEB) has 2 runways.
• A variety of aircraft were used through Essendon in the 1960s - Lockheed L-188 Electras.
• The closest airport to Essendon Airport (MEB) is Melbourne Airport (MEL), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) NW of MEB.
• On 31 January 1945, a heavily-modified Stinson Model A registered VH-UYY and named Tokana, operated by Australian National Airways, departed from Essendon Airport for the daily flight to Kerang.
• The furthest airport from Essendon Airport (MEB) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is nearly antipodal to Essendon Airport (meaning Essendon Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Flores Airport), and is located 12,192 miles (19,620 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
• Because of Essendon Airport's relatively low elevation of 282 feet, planes can take off or land at Essendon 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 "Essendon Airport", another name for MEB is "Melbourne/Essendon".