Nonstop flight route between Barter Island, Alaska, United States and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Barter Island LRRS Airport (BTI), Barter Island, Alaska, United States and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,806 miles (or 6,125 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 Barter Island LRRS Airport and RAF Fairford, 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 Barter Island LRRS Airport and RAF Fairford. 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 Barter Island LRRS Airport (BTI):

• The closest airport to Barter Island LRRS Airport (BTI) is Deadhorse Airport (SCC), which is located 115 miles (184 kilometers) W of BTI.
• In addition to being known as "Barter Island LRRS Airport", another name for BTI is "Barter Island LRRS BAR-MAIN".
• Because of Barter Island LRRS Airport's relatively low elevation of 2 feet, planes can take off or land at Barter Island LRRS 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.
• With the signing of the North American Air Defence Modernization agreement at the "Shamrock Summit" between Prime Minister Mulroney and President Reagan in Quebec City on 18 March 1985, the DEW Line began its eventual upgrading and transition becoming the North Warning System of today.
• Barter Island LRRS Airport (BTI) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Barter Island LRRS Airport (BTI) is Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Airport (TNM), which is located 10,003 miles (16,099 kilometers) away in Villa Las Estrellas, Antarctica.
• The airport remains open to support the small settlement at Kaktovik and to provide contractor support access to the military radar site.
• The original runway was built by the United States military in 1947.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
• In the early years of the Cold War the British and American governments reached an agreement under which elements of the USAF Strategic Air Command would be based in the UK.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• Royal Air Force Fairford or more simply RAF Fairford is a Royal Air Force station in Gloucestershire, England which is currently a standby airfield and therefore not in everyday use.
• On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
• RAF Fairford was constructed in 1944 to serve as an airfield for British and American troop carriers and gliders for the D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II.
• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.