Nonstop flight route between Guizhou Province, China and Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bijie Feixiong Airport (BFJ), Guizhou Province, China and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,152 miles (or 8,291 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 Bijie Feixiong Airport and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component, 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 Bijie Feixiong Airport and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component. 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 Bijie Feixiong Airport (BFJ):

• The closest airport to Bijie Feixiong Airport (BFJ) is Anshun Huangguoshu Airport (AVA), which is located 80 miles (129 kilometers) SSE of BFJ.
• In addition to being known as "Bijie Feixiong Airport", other names for BFJ include "毕节飞雄机场", "Bìjié Fēixióng Jīchǎng" and "ZUBJ".
• The furthest airport from Bijie Feixiong Airport (BFJ) is Chañaral Airport (CNR), which is nearly antipodal to Bijie Feixiong Airport (meaning Bijie Feixiong Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chañaral Airport), and is located 12,176 miles (19,595 kilometers) away in Chañaral, Atacama Region, Chile.
• Bijie Feixiong Airport (BFJ) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE):

• The closest airport to NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Merzbrück Airfield (AAH), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSE of GKE.
• E-3A Component flying operations began in February 1982 after delivery of the first E­3A aircraft.
• Because of NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component's relatively low elevation of 296 feet, planes can take off or land at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component 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 NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,929 miles (19,198 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The E-3A Component is NATO's first­ operational flying unit with multinational manning.
• Since coming into service in the early 1980s, the aircraft and their onboard systems and associated ground-based equipment have undergone regular upgrading.
• In January 1980 the first E-3A Component personnel started arriving at the base, and in October 1980 the NATO Defence Planning Committee granted the E-3A Component the status of a NATO International Military Headquarters.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.