Nonstop flight route between Bratislava, Slovakia and Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bratislava Airport (BTS), Bratislava, Slovakia and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 536 miles (or 862 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 relatively short distance between Bratislava Airport and NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component, the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Bratislava Airport (BTS):

• The furthest airport from Bratislava Airport (BTS) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,716 miles (18,855 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The number of passengers served at Bratislava Airport decreased temporarily in the early 1990s due to competition by the nearby Vienna International Airport distant from Bratislava Airport), but it has been quickly increasing since.
• Bratislava Airport (BTS) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Bratislava Airport", other names for BTS include "Milan Rastislav Štefánik Airport" and "Letisko M. R. Štefánika".
• Bratislava Airport handled 1,416,117 passengers last year.
• Bratislava serves as a base for the Slovak Government Flying Service as well as AirExplore, Go2Sky, Opera Jet, Samair, Travel Service Slovakia and VR Jet.
• Because of Bratislava Airport's relatively low elevation of 436 feet, planes can take off or land at Bratislava 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 closest airport to Bratislava Airport (BTS) is Vienna International Airport (VIE), which is located 30 miles (48 kilometers) W of BTS.

Facts about NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE):

• The furthest airport from NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,929 miles (19,198 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• E-3A Component flying operations began in February 1982 after delivery of the first E­3A aircraft.
• Since that time, most of the buildings on base have been renovated to present day standards and several new buildings have been erected.
• The Component’s multinational, fully integrated workforce consists of more than 3,000 military and civilian personnel from 16 NATO member nations.
• The E-3A Component directly employs more than 3,000 personnel at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen and therefore has a significant economic impact in the surrounding communities.
• Because of NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component's relatively low elevation of 296 feet, planes can take off or land at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component 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.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Merzbrück Airfield (AAH), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSE of GKE.
• Surrounded by farmland and a natural woodland reserve, the base was originally built by the Royal Air Force after World War II and operated as RAF Geilenkirchen from 1953 onwards.
• The E-3A Component is NATO's first­ operational flying unit with multinational manning.