Nonstop flight route between Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia and Upington, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Kota Kinabalu International Airport (BKI), Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia and Upington Airport (UTN), Upington, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,704 miles (or 10,790 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 Kota Kinabalu International Airport and Upington 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 Kota Kinabalu International Airport and Upington 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 Kota Kinabalu International Airport (BKI):

• Terminal 1's new wing was completed and opened for commercial use on 19 August 2008 while the other wing was closed for renovation and is expected to complete by May 2010.
• Because of Kota Kinabalu International Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Kota Kinabalu 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 airport first began as a military airfield built by the Japanese occupying forces during World-War II.
• The Departure Hall column head design is inspired by the 'Wakid' basket design.
• Kota Kinabalu International Airport (BKI) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Kota Kinabalu International Airport", another name for BKI is "Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Kota Kinabalu".
• In mid-2005, the Malaysian government approved a project for major renovation and extension of KKIA worth RM1.4 billion.
• Kota Kinabalu International Airport handled 6,929,692 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Kota Kinabalu International Airport (BKI) is Lábrea Airport (LBR), which is nearly antipodal to Kota Kinabalu International Airport (meaning Kota Kinabalu International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Lábrea Airport), and is located 12,330 miles (19,843 kilometers) away in Lábrea, Amazonas, Brazil.
• The closest airport to Kota Kinabalu International Airport (BKI) is Lapangan Terbang Keningau Keningau Airport (KGU), which is located 41 miles (67 kilometers) S of BKI.
• Around the 1970s to 1980s, a newer terminal building was built on the other side of the runway.

Facts about Upington Airport (UTN):

• The Concorde did flight testing at Upington Airport in June 1976.
• With the fall of the Portuguese regime in Angola, South African Airways lost its landing rights in Luanda.
• The closest airport to Upington Airport (UTN) is Johan Pienaar Airport (KMH), which is located 147 miles (236 kilometers) ENE of UTN.
• Upington Airport (UTN) has 3 runways.
• The furthest airport from Upington Airport (UTN) is Princeville Airport (HPV), which is nearly antipodal to Upington Airport (meaning Upington Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Princeville Airport), and is located 12,007 miles (19,323 kilometers) away in Hanalei, Hawaii, United States.