Nonstop flight route between Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, United States and Valenciennes, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Wings Field (BBX), Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, United States and Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS), Valenciennes, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,712 miles (or 5,975 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 Wings Field and Valenciennes-Denain 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 Wings Field and Valenciennes-Denain 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 Wings Field (BBX):

• The furthest airport from Wings Field (BBX) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,723 miles (18,866 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Wings Field (BBX) is NAS JRB Willow Grove (NXX), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) NE of BBX.
• Wings Field covers 217 acres and has one asphalt runway, 6/24, 3,700 x 75 ft.
• Wings Airways was a commuter airline based at Wings Field.
• Because of Wings Field's relatively low elevation of 302 feet, planes can take off or land at Wings Field 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 "Wings Field", another name for BBX is "LOM".
• Wings Field (BBX) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS):

• Reconstruction of the airport included an entirely new asphalt runway, aligned 11/29, along with appropriate taxiways, ramp space and new infrastructure buildings on the north-west side of the airfield.
• The wartime air base is still evident with the 5500' concrete NE/SW runway remaining, complete with patched bomb craters and expansion joints allowing grass to grow between the concrete pads.
• Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) currently has only 1 runway.
• It appears that the Luftwaffe moved out of Denain in 1941 and the airfield was left unused.
• In addition to being known as "Valenciennes-Denain Airport", another name for XVS is "(Advanced Landing Ground A-83/B-74)".
• Because of Valenciennes-Denain Airport's relatively low elevation of 177 feet, planes can take off or land at Valenciennes-Denain 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 Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,987 miles (19,291 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• After the construction of a military airfield at Denain, the airfield was reactivated by the Luftwaffe, stationing Jagdgeschwader 3, a day fighter-interceptor unit assigned to the "Defense of the Reich" campaign against the American Eighth Air Force heavy bombers attacking targets in Occupied Europe and Germany.
• The closest airport to Valenciennes-Denain Airport (XVS) is Lille Airport (LIL), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) NW of XVS.
• C-47 Skytrain transports moved in and out of the American controlled airfield almost immediately after the runway was repaired, supplying the front line forces with the necessary materiel to support their advance.