Nonstop flight route between Big Spring, Texas, United States and Heraklion, Crete, Greece:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS), Big Spring, Texas, United States and Heraklion International Airport “Nikos Kazantzakis” (HER), Heraklion, Crete, Greece would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,631 miles (or 10,672 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield and Heraklion International Airport “Nikos Kazantzakis”, 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield and Heraklion International Airport “Nikos Kazantzakis”. 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS):

• The furthest airport from Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,166 miles (17,969 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Construction of the Army Air Forces Bombardier School began on 15 May 1942, and the airfield received its first class of cadets on 16 September 1942.
• The Air Force established a standard wing structure—a dual deputy concept—in 1963.
• Instruction of the first class began in April 1952.
• The closest airport to Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Midland Airpark (MDD), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) WSW of BGS.
• In August 1972, ATC established a pilot instructor training course for Vietnamese Air Force instructors at Webb AFB, Texas.
• At that time, nearly 6,000 students had graduated and the field's training aircraft had flown approximately 400,000 hours and more than 60 million miles.
• The airfield and flight line was converted to an uncontrolled/UNICOM-only general aviation airport renamed Big Spring McMahon-Wrinkle Airport, serving the City of Big Spring.

Facts about Heraklion International Airport “Nikos Kazantzakis” (HER):

• During the summer months the airport can become very congested.
• The furthest airport from Heraklion International Airport “Nikos Kazantzakis” (HER) is Rurutu Airport (RUR), which is located 11,521 miles (18,541 kilometers) away in Rurutu, French Polynesia.
• Heraklion International Airport, “Nikos Kazantzakis” is the primary airport on the island of Crete, Greece, and the country’s second busiest airport after Athens International Airport.
• At first, the airport only offered very basic service, with only primitive installations on the site, in the form of three tents, smoke for wind determination and storm lamps for runway lighting.
• Heraklion International Airport “Nikos Kazantzakis” (HER) has 2 runways.
• Because of Heraklion International Airport “Nikos Kazantzakis”'s relatively low elevation of 115 feet, planes can take off or land at Heraklion International Airport “Nikos Kazantzakis” 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 closest airport to Heraklion International Airport “Nikos Kazantzakis” (HER) is Sitia Airport (JSH), which is located 53 miles (85 kilometers) E of HER.
• In addition to being known as "Heraklion International Airport “Nikos Kazantzakis”", another name for HER is "Κρατικός Αερολιμένας Ηρακλείου “Νίκος Καζαντζάκης”".