Nonstop flight route between Qamdo Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region, China and Shafter, California, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Qamdo Bamda Airport (BPX), Qamdo Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region, China and Shafter Airport (MIT), Shafter, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,300 miles (or 11,748 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 Shafter 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 Qamdo Bamda Airport and Shafter 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 Qamdo Bamda Airport (BPX):

• 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.
• 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.
• 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 Shafter Airport (MIT):

• The primary aircraft flown at Minter Field was the Vultee BT-13 Valiant, which was used for basic flight training.
• Because of Shafter Airport's relatively low elevation of 424 feet, planes can take off or land at Shafter 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 Shafter Airport (MIT) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,404 miles (18,353 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• In addition to being known as "Shafter Airport", another name for MIT is "Minter Field".
• Shafter Airport (MIT) has 2 runways.
• In August, the first operational training units s began arriving at Minter, the airfields mission being advanced pilot training of USAAC bomber, attack, transport and pursuit pilots.
• The closest airport to Shafter Airport (MIT) is Meadows Field (BFL), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) ESE of MIT.