Nonstop flight route between Bankstown (near Sydney), New South Wales, Australia and Pituffik, Greenland:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from BWU to THU:
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- About this route
- BWU Airport Information
- THU Airport Information
- Facts about BWU
- Facts about THU
- Map of Nearest Airports to BWU
- List of Nearest Airports to BWU
- Map of Furthest Airports from BWU
- List of Furthest Airports from BWU
- Map of Nearest Airports to THU
- List of Nearest Airports to THU
- Map of Furthest Airports from THU
- List of Furthest Airports from THU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Bankstown Airport (BWU), Bankstown (near Sydney), New South Wales, Australia and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,241 miles (or 14,872 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 Bankstown Airport and Thule Air 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 Bankstown Airport and Thule Air Base. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | BWU / YSBK |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Bankstown (near Sydney), New South Wales, Australia |
| GPS Coordinates: | 33°55'29"S by 150°59'17"E |
| Operator/Owner: | Bankstown Airport Ltd. |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 34 feet (10 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 3 |
| View all routes: | Routes from BWU |
| More Information: | BWU Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | THU / BGTL |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Pituffik, Greenland |
| GPS Coordinates: | 76°31'51"N by 68°42'11"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from THU |
| More Information: | THU Maps & Info |
Facts about Bankstown Airport (BWU):
- The terminal plays host to numerous events year round such as the annual Sydney Aviation Model Show.
- Bankstown Airport operates 24 hours a day, with limitations placed on night circuit training.
- In the late 1970s Hawker de Havilland relocated their Lidcombe plant to Bankstown Airport.
- In addition to being known as "Bankstown Airport", another name for BWU is "Sydney/Bankstown Airport".
- The airport has three runways.
- Bankstown Airport (BWU) has 3 runways.
- The furthest airport from Bankstown Airport (BWU) is Santa Maria Airport (SMA), which is nearly antipodal to Bankstown Airport (meaning Bankstown Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Santa Maria Airport), and is located 12,135 miles (19,529 kilometers) away in Santa Maria, Portugal.
- Runway 11C/29C has three stage, medium intensity edge lights and a Precision Approach Path Indicator or.
- Because of Bankstown Airport's relatively low elevation of 34 feet, planes can take off or land at Bankstown 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 airport and the neighbouring Georges River Golf Course together form a suburb which is usually referred to as Bankstown Airport, although the official name is Bankstown Aerodrome.
- The closest airport to Bankstown Airport (BWU) is Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) E of BWU.
- On 15 September 1982, a Douglas C-47, stored in the open, was damaged when the pilot of a light aircraft committed suicide by deliberately crashing it nearby.
- Bankstown has its own dedicated air traffic control tower, operated by Airservices Australia, and uses Class D airspace procedures.
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- Thule Air Base is also home to the 821st Air Base Group and is responsible for air base support within the Thule Defense Area for the multinational population of "Team Thule." The base hosts the 12th Space Warning Squadron which operates a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System designed to detect and track ICBMs launched against North America.
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
- In 1957 construction began on 4 Nike Missile sites around the base, and they and their radar systems were operational by the end of 1958.
- In 1961, a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System radar was constructed at "J-Site," 21 km northeast of main base.
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
- The ratification of the treaty in 1951 did not change much, except that the Danish national flag Dannebrog must be side by side with Stars and Stripes on the base.
- In 1954, the 378 m Globecom Tower, a tower for military radio communication, was built at Northmountain.
- Thule Air Base or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport, is the United States Air Force's northernmost base, located 1,207 km north of the Arctic Circle and 1,524 km from the North Pole on the northwest side of the island of Greenland.
- The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
- After the German occupation of Denmark on 9 April 1940, Henrik Kauffmann Danish Ambassador to the United States, made an agreement "In the name of the king" with the United States authorizing the United States to defend the Danish colonies on Greenland from German aggression - this agreement faced Kaufmann with a charge of high treason.
- Knud Rasmussen was the first to recognize the Pituffik plain as ideal for an airport.
