Nonstop flight route between Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States and Ikela, Democratic Republic of the Congo:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Biggs Army Airfield (BIF), Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States and Ikela Airport (IKL), Ikela, Democratic Republic of the Congo would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,539 miles (or 13,741 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 Biggs Army Airfield and Ikela 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 Biggs Army Airfield and Ikela 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 Biggs Army Airfield (BIF):

• With World War II imminent, a massive construction effort was begun at Biggs Army Airfield between 1942–1945.
• With the activation of TAC, the new command assigned Headquarters, Ninth Air Force to Biggs on 28 March upon its return from Germany.
• In addition to being known as "Biggs Army Airfield", another name for BIF is "Biggs Air Force BaseBiggs Field".
• The 97th experienced two mission changes in 1955.
• Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) is El Paso International Airport (ELP), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) S of BIF.
• In 1958, the ability of the B-47 to penetrate Soviet airspace became compromised by improvements to the Soviet air defense system.
• On 27 September 1947, Biggs Army Airfield became Biggs Air Force Base with the establishment of the United States Air Force, replacing the Army Air Forces.
• The furthest airport from Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,387 miles (18,325 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• Beginning in 1950, the 97th Bomb Wing received its first B-50 Superfortress, an improved version of the B-29 capable of delivering atomic weapons.

Facts about Ikela Airport (IKL):

• The furthest airport from Ikela Airport (IKL) is Cassidy International Airport (CXI), which is nearly antipodal to Ikela Airport (meaning Ikela Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Cassidy International Airport), and is located 12,367 miles (19,903 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Kiribati.
• The closest airport to Ikela Airport (IKL) is Lodja Airport (LJA), which is located 152 miles (245 kilometers) S of IKL.