Nonstop flight route between Big Spring, Texas, United States and Tartu, Estonia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS), Big Spring, Texas, United States and Tartu Airport (TAY), Tartu, Estonia would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,507 miles (or 8,863 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 Tartu 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield and Tartu 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 Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS):

• Perhaps the most dominant feature on the ATC landscape in 1974 was the serious fuel shortage the command had to contend with for much of the year.
• At Webb AFB, the last two pilot training classes completed course work on 30 August 1977, and fixed wing qualification training ended on 1 September 1977.
• 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.
• Activated on 26 June 1942, the mission of Big Spring AAF was to train aviation cadets in high altitude precision bombing as bombardiers.
• The facility was brought back into service as a primary training installation because of the Korean War and the need for additional pilots.
• 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.
• 3560th Pilot Training Wing
• Webb Air Force Base, previously named Big Spring Air Force Base, was a United States Air Force facility of the Air Training Command that operated from 1951 to 1977 in west Texas within the current city limits of Big Spring.
• The facility first was used by the United States Army Air Forces as Big Spring Army Air Field, opening on 28 April 1942 as part of the Central Flying Training Command.
• In 1956, the Air Defense Command 331st Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was transferred to Webb from Stewart Air Force Base in New York to defend the southern United States border on air intercept missions as part of the Central Air Defense Force.
• Instruction of the first class began in April 1952.
• In 1968, ATC established a single phase-pilot training squadron concept at Webb.

Facts about Tartu Airport (TAY):

• The furthest airport from Tartu Airport (TAY) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,031 miles (17,753 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The airport was opened on 15 May 1946.
• The closest airport to Tartu Airport (TAY) is Pskov Airport (PKV), which is located 72 miles (116 kilometers) ESE of TAY.
• In 2010 Tartu Airport served 23,504 passengers.
• Because of Tartu Airport's relatively low elevation of 219 feet, planes can take off or land at Tartu 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.
• Tartu Airport (TAY) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Tartu Airport", another name for TAY is "Tartu lennujaam".