Nonstop flight route between Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States and Celle, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Biggs Army Airfield (BIF), Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States and Celle Air Base (ZCN), Celle, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,463 miles (or 8,792 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 Celle Air Base, 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 Celle Air Base. 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):

• The 97th operated B-29s from Biggs, and participated in numerous exercises, operational readiness inspections, and overseas deployments.
• 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 addition to being known as "Biggs Army Airfield", another name for BIF is "Biggs Air Force BaseBiggs Field".
• With the activation of TAC, the new command assigned Headquarters, Ninth Air Force to Biggs on 28 March upon its return from Germany.
• 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 1959, the B-36s were sent to Davis-Monthan AFB for reclamation as B-52B Stratofortresses began to arrive, being transferred from the 99th Bombardment Wing at Westover AFB, Massachusetts which was receiving new B-52Ds.
• A period of organization and continued construction followed, with II Bomber Command taking over training.

Facts about Celle Air Base (ZCN):

• Because of Celle Air Base's relatively low elevation of 129 feet, planes can take off or land at Celle Air Base 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.
• Celle Air Base (ZCN) currently has only 1 runway.
• Due to the tense situation during the building of the Berlin Wall a small unit of the National Guard of the United States was stationed at Celle Air Base in 1961 in case of a second Berlin Airlift.
• Until the end of World War II the airfield operated under the name of Fliegerhorst Celle-Wietzenbruch.
• In addition to being known as "Celle Air Base", other names for ZCN include "Heeresflugplatz Celle" and "(Advanced Landing Ground B-118)".
• Under British occupation metal plates were laid on the entire airfield in order to enable the landing of larger aircraft.
• The closest airport to Celle Air Base (ZCN) is Hannover Airport (HAJ), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) WSW of ZCN.
• The furthest airport from Celle Air Base (ZCN) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,761 miles (18,928 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The Treaty of Versailles in 1919 prohibited the German Reich to have her own air force.
• The infrastructure for a renewed airlift, however, was kept in place and was constantly improved until German reunification.