Nonstop flight route between Qamdo Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region, China and Alexandria, Louisiana, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Qamdo Bamda Airport (BPX), Qamdo Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region, China and Esler Field (ESF), Alexandria, Louisiana, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,112 miles (or 13,056 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 Qamdo Bamda Airport and Esler Field, 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 Qamdo Bamda Airport and Esler Field. 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 Qamdo Bamda Airport (BPX):

• Visitors are warned before landing to move slowly on leaving the plane and that they may feel light headed or dizzy because of the thin air.
• Qamdo Bamda Airport (BPX) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Qamdo Bamda Airport (BPX) is Yushu Batang Airport (YUS), which is located 158 miles (254 kilometers) N of BPX.
• In addition to being known as "Qamdo Bamda Airport", other names for BPX include "昌都邦达机场" and "Chāngdū Bāngdá Jīchǎng".
• The furthest airport from Qamdo Bamda Airport (BPX) is Viña del Mar Airport (KNA), which is located 11,747 miles (18,904 kilometers) away in Viña del Mar, Chile.
• Because of Qamdo Bamda Airport's high elevation of 14,436 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at BPX. Combined with a high temperature, this could make BPX a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.

Facts about Esler Field (ESF):

• Esler Field (ESF) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Esler Field (ESF) is Alexandria International Airport (AEX), which is located only 16 miles (25 kilometers) WSW of ESF.
• Because of Esler Field's relatively low elevation of 112 feet, planes can take off or land at Esler Field 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 Esler Field (ESF) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 10,988 miles (17,683 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• In late 1943, Esler was again reassigned within Third Air Force, to the I Tactical Air Division, to become a close air support training field.
• In addition to being known as "Esler Field", another name for ESF is "Esler Regional AirportEsler Army Airfield".
• In the 1970s, the airport had scheduled passenger airline service provided by several air carriers including Delta Air Lines which operated mainline jet aircraft from Esler.
• In the early '90s, Esler Regional Airport became lifeless and quiet with an uncertain future after airport services including all scheduled passenger airline flights for central Louisiana were moved to the England Industrial Airpark and Community, the location of the former England Air Force Base which is now known as Alexandria International Airport.
• Construction of the airport, originally called Camp Beauregard Army Field, for the United States Army Air Corps began in 1940.
• On 1 August 1945, the airfield was again reassigned directly to Third Air Force.