Nonstop flight route between Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom and Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between George Best Belfast City Airport (BHD), Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom and King Shaka International (DUR), Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,222 miles (or 10,013 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 George Best Belfast City Airport and King Shaka International, 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 George Best Belfast City Airport and King Shaka International. 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 George Best Belfast City Airport (BHD):

• The airport is located on the A2, Sydenham by-pass road between Belfast and Holywood.
• George Best Belfast City Airport handled 2,541,759 passengers last year.
• In March 2006, it was announced that the airport would be renamed in memory of Northern Irish footballer George Best.
• The furthest airport from George Best Belfast City Airport (BHD) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,843 miles (19,059 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• Because of George Best Belfast City Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at George Best Belfast City 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.
• In October 2012 Aer Lingus moved its services from Belfast International to the Airport.
• The closest airport to George Best Belfast City Airport (BHD) is Belfast International Airport (BFS), which is located only 14 miles (23 kilometers) WNW of BHD.
• George Best Belfast City Airport (BHD) currently has only 1 runway.
• Following major capital investment Bombardier sold the airport in 2003 for £35 million to the Spanish company Ferrovial, the owner of BAA Airports.
• The airport has recently applied for a complete removal of the limit on the seats it can sell – a key element of the 1997 planning agreement, which guards against over-expansion of an airport which is sited in a densely populated location.
• The airport was formerly known as "Belfast City Airport" until it was renamed in 2006 in memory of George Best, the professional footballer from Belfast.
• Passenger numbers increased by 4.5% from 2,621,763 in 2009 to 2,740,341 in 2010, the highest total on record at the airport.
• In addition to being known as "George Best Belfast City Airport", another name for BHD is "Belfast City Airport".

Facts about King Shaka International (DUR):

• Neighbouring communities are Tongaat to the north-west, Verulam to the south-west, and Umdloti to the south-east.
• In 2013 Skytrax announced that King Shaka International Airport was the best airport in the world handling under 5 million passengers.
• It is unclear what the fate of the existing Durban International Airport will be now that KSIA is complete.
• The closest airport to King Shaka International (DUR) is Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) W of DUR.
• One of the objectives of the cargo terminal is to recapture local air freight traffic from JNB.
• Because of King Shaka International's relatively low elevation of 295 feet, planes can take off or land at King Shaka International 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 King Shaka International (DUR) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,682 miles (18,801 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• King Shaka International (DUR) currently has only 1 runway.