Nonstop flight route between Bedford, Massachusetts, United States and Pituffik, Greenland:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from BED to THU:
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- About this route
- BED Airport Information
- THU Airport Information
- Facts about BED
- Facts about THU
- Map of Nearest Airports to BED
- List of Nearest Airports to BED
- Map of Furthest Airports from BED
- List of Furthest Airports from BED
- Map of Nearest Airports to THU
- List of Nearest Airports to THU
- Map of Furthest Airports from THU
- List of Furthest Airports from THU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Laurence G. Hanscom Field (BED), Bedford, Massachusetts, United States and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,355 miles (or 3,789 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 relatively short distance between Laurence G. Hanscom Field and Thule Air Base, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | BED / KBED |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Bedford, Massachusetts, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 42°28'11"N by 71°17'20"W |
| Operator/Owner: | Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) |
| Airport Type: | Public / Military |
| Elevation: | 132 feet (40 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from BED |
| More Information: | BED Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | THU / BGTL |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Pituffik, Greenland |
| GPS Coordinates: | 76°31'51"N by 68°42'11"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from THU |
| More Information: | THU Maps & Info |
Facts about Laurence G. Hanscom Field (BED):
- Laurence G. Hanscom Field (BED) has 2 runways.
- The Massachusetts Air and Space Museum is looking at Hanscom Field as a future location.
- The field serves aircraft from Piper Cubs to Gulfstream V jets.
- The furthest airport from Laurence G. Hanscom Field (BED) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,753 miles (18,914 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Because of Laurence G. Hanscom Field's relatively low elevation of 132 feet, planes can take off or land at Laurence G. Hanscom 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 "Laurence G. Hanscom Field", another name for BED is "Hanscom Air Force Base".
- As an airport close to Boston, many teams competing in the Boston area use Hanscom Field.
- The closest airport to Laurence G. Hanscom Field (BED) is Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) ESE of BED.
- In September 1964, The Beatles arrived at Hanscom Field aboard a chartered aircraft during one of their American concert tours.
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
- Thule Air Base has served as the regional hub for nearby installations, including Cape Atholl, Camp Century, Camp TUTO, Sites 1 and 2, P-Mountain, J-Site, North and South Mountains, and a research rocket firing site.
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
- Thule Air Base or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport, is the United States Air Force's northernmost base, located 1,207 km north of the Arctic Circle and 1,524 km from the North Pole on the northwest side of the island of Greenland.
- After the German occupation of Denmark on 9 April 1940, Henrik Kauffmann Danish Ambassador to the United States, made an agreement "In the name of the king" with the United States authorizing the United States to defend the Danish colonies on Greenland from German aggression - this agreement faced Kaufmann with a charge of high treason.
- There is only a brief period each year in the summer when sea ice thins sufficiently to send supply ships to the base.
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
- A cluster of huts known as Pituffik stood on the wide plain where the base was built in 1951.
- In the winter of 1956/57 three KC-97 tankers and alternately one of two RB-47H aircraft made polar flights to inspect Soviet defenses.
