Nonstop flight route between Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States and Surat Thani, Thailand:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from BIF to URT:
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- About this route
- BIF Airport Information
- URT Airport Information
- Facts about BIF
- Facts about URT
- Map of Nearest Airports to BIF
- List of Nearest Airports to BIF
- Map of Furthest Airports from BIF
- List of Furthest Airports from BIF
- Map of Nearest Airports to URT
- List of Nearest Airports to URT
- Map of Furthest Airports from URT
- List of Furthest Airports from URT
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Biggs Army Airfield (BIF), Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States and Surat Thani International Airport (URT), Surat Thani, Thailand would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,142 miles (or 14,712 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 Surat Thani International 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 Surat Thani International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | BIF / KBIF |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 31°50'57"N by 106°22'47"W |
Operator/Owner: | U.S. Army ATCA-ASO |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 3946 feet (1,203 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from BIF |
More Information: | BIF Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | URT / VTSB |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Surat Thani, Thailand |
GPS Coordinates: | 9°7'57"N by 99°8'8"E |
Operator/Owner: | Department of Aviation |
Airport Type: | Public & Military |
Elevation: | 286 feet (87 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from URT |
More Information: | URT Maps & Info |
Facts about Biggs Army Airfield (BIF):
- In addition to being known as "Biggs Army Airfield", another name for BIF is "Biggs Air Force BaseBiggs Field".
- 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.
- Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) currently has only 1 runway.
- In April 1943, the 330th Bombardment Group was established at Biggs to begin replacement training of personnel, rather than the training of entire groups.
- With World War II imminent, a massive construction effort was begun at Biggs Army Airfield between 1942–1945.
- In 1958, the ability of the B-47 to penetrate Soviet airspace became compromised by improvements to the Soviet air defense system.
- The 97th operated B-29s from Biggs, and participated in numerous exercises, operational readiness inspections, and overseas deployments.
- 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.
Facts about Surat Thani International Airport (URT):
- The closest airport to Surat Thani International Airport (URT) is Ranong Airport (UNN), which is located 58 miles (94 kilometers) NW of URT.
- In addition to being known as "Surat Thani International Airport", another name for URT is "ท่าอากาศยานสุราษฎร์ธานี".
- Surat Thani International Airport (URT) currently has only 1 runway.
- Because of Surat Thani International Airport's relatively low elevation of 286 feet, planes can take off or land at Surat Thani International 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.
- The furthest airport from Surat Thani International Airport (URT) is Capitán FAP Carlos Martínez de Pinillos International Airport (TRU), which is nearly antipodal to Surat Thani International Airport (meaning Surat Thani International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Capitán FAP Carlos Martínez de Pinillos International Airport), and is located 12,297 miles (19,789 kilometers) away in Trujillo, Peru.
- The 701 Squadron, "Shark", flies six SAAB JAS-39 C/D Gripen fighter aircraft and still operates up to twelve of the remaining F-5B and F-5E Tiger fighters.