Nonstop flight route between Benson, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Benson (BEX), Benson, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom and Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,506 miles (or 5,643 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 Benson and Philadelphia 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 Benson and Philadelphia 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 Benson (BEX):

• The closest airport to RAF Benson (BEX) is RAF High Wycombe (HYC), which is located only 13 miles (22 kilometers) ENE of BEX.
• The future of RAF Benson was in doubt for some time, while Project Belvedere was looking into closing at least one of Joint Helicopter Command's airfields.
• The airfield is a well-known frost hollow, often recording the coldest temperatures in the UK.
• The furthest airport from RAF Benson (BEX) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,879 miles (19,118 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The station retained a reconnaissance role for some years after the war, with Avro Lancaster, Spitfire, Mosquito, Gloster Meteor PR.Mk 10 and English Electric Canberra PR.Mk 3 aircraft.

Facts about Philadelphia International Airport (PHL):

• Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) has 4 runways.
• Philadelphia International Airport is important to Philadelphia, its metropolitan region and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
• During 1945 the Air Force reduced its use of the airport and it was returned to civil control that September.
• The closest airport to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) is Philadelphia Seaplane BaseChandler Field (PSQ), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) WSW of PHL.
• The furthest airport from Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,734 miles (18,884 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The second study, the PHL Capacity Enhancement Program has a much larger scope and is considering more drastic ways to increase runway capacity at PHL.
• Because of Philadelphia International Airport's relatively low elevation of 36 feet, planes can take off or land at Philadelphia 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.
• Taxis charge a flat rate, currently $28.50 plus a fuel surcharge, for transportation from the airport to downtown Philadelphia.
• In 2004 Southwest Airlines announced it would begin flights from PHL, challenging US Airways in some of its important East Coast and Midwest markets.
• As part of Philadelphia International Airport's 6.4 billion dollar expansion plans, an automated people mover is expected between 2015 and 2019.