Nonstop flight route between Biggin Hill / London, England, United Kingdom and Tampa, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH), Biggin Hill / London, England, United Kingdom and MacDill Air Force Base (MCF), Tampa, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,431 miles (or 7,131 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 London Biggin Hill Airport and MacDill Air Force 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 London Biggin Hill Airport and MacDill Air Force 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 London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH):

• The closest airport to London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH) is Redhill Aerodrome (KRH), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SW of BQH.
• In addition to being known as "London Biggin Hill Airport", another name for BQH is "Biggin Hill Airport".
• The furthest airport from London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,892 miles (19,139 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The airport is located on a hill top, just to the east of the Bromley to Westerham road and about 1 mile to the north of the town of Biggin Hill.
• London Biggin Hill Airport (BQH) has 2 runways.
• Construction on a new state-of-the-art hangar alongside the Passenger Terminal commenced in October 2010.
• During the Second World War the airfield was one of the commanding bases for the Battle of Britain, with both Spitfires and Hurricanes from a variety of squadrons being based there.
• Because of London Biggin Hill Airport's relatively low elevation of 599 feet, planes can take off or land at London Biggin Hill 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.
• Between the wars, the airfield was used by a number of experimental units, working on instrument design, ground based anti-aircraft defences, and night flying.

Facts about MacDill Air Force Base (MCF):

• The closest airport to MacDill Air Force Base (MCF) is Peter O. Knight Airport (TPF), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NE of MCF.
• It was the B-26 that earned the slogan "one a day in Tampa Bay." The aircraft proved hard to fly and land by many pilots due to its short wings, high landing speeds, and fighter plane maneuverability.
• In addition to being known as "MacDill Air Force Base", another name for MCF is "MacDill AFB".
• The furthest airport from MacDill Air Force Base (MCF) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,436 miles (18,405 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• In addition MacDill provided transitional training in the B-17 Flying Fortress.
• After the war in Europe had broken out in September 1939, fears of Nazi U-Boats attacking American shipping in the Gulf of Mexico was the concern of the War Department.
• In late 1943, when Second Air Force began transitioning to B-29 Superfortress training, the B-17 mission returned to MacDill which continued through the end of World War II.