Nonstop flight route between Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom and Beijing, People's Republic of China:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom and Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK), Beijing, People's Republic of China would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,087 miles (or 8,186 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 RAF Brize Norton and Beijing Capital International 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 RAF Brize Norton and Beijing Capital International 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 RAF Brize Norton (BZZ):

• In 1970 two squadrons 99 Squadron and 511 Squadron operating the Bristol Britannia moved from RAF Lyneham.
• Like many UK military bases RAF Brize Norton has been subject to limited protests by peace demonstrators.
• During the 2003 Iraq War four anti-war protesters managed to access the main runway in an attempt to prevent aircraft taking off.
• A peace camp was held at the station from 21 to 25 April 2005, along with a demonstration in nearby Carterton.
• The closest airport to RAF Brize Norton (BZZ) is RAF Fairford (FFD), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) WSW of BZZ.
• Following the Falklands War, the RAF found itself lacking in the strategic transport capabilities required to sustain the expanded military presence there.
• On 23 May 2001 the RAF's first C-17 arrived at Brize Norton, one of six to be delivered to 99 Squadron.
• The furthest airport from RAF Brize Norton (BZZ) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,888 miles (19,132 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• AirTanker Services is operating the RAF's Airbus A330 MRTT to provide aerial re-fuelling services at Brize Norton.

Facts about Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK):

• One of Terminal 3's highlights is the US$240 million luggage-transfer system.
• To accommodate the growing traffic volume, Beijing Capital added the enormous Terminal 3 in 2008 in time for the Olympic Games, the second largest airport terminal in the world after Dubai International Airport's Terminal 3, and the sixth largest building in the world by area.
• It provides 72 aerobridges or jetways, further complemented with remote parking bays which bring the total of gates to 150 for the terminal alone.
• The closest airport to Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) is Beijing Nanyuan Airport (NAY), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) SSW of PEK.
• Due to limited capacity at Beijing Capital International Airport, a new airport in Daxing is being planned which BCIA will be only served its domestic flights.
• Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) has 3 runways.
• The furthest airport from Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) is Gobernador Edgardo Castello Airport (VDM), which is nearly antipodal to Beijing Capital International Airport (meaning Beijing Capital International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Gobernador Edgardo Castello Airport), and is located 12,378 miles (19,920 kilometers) away in Viedma, Argentina.
• Along with X-ray scanners, additional equipment conducts checks such as for explosives.
• Because of Beijing Capital International Airport's relatively low elevation of 116 feet, planes can take off or land at Beijing Capital International 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.
• On 20 July 2013, a man in a wheelchair detonated small homemade explosives which exploded on Terminal 3 in the Beijing International Airport.
• Beijing Capital International Airport handled 83,712,355 passengers last year.
• With the opening of Terminal 3, the terminal was closed for light refurbishment, and its airlines were moved to Terminal 2 on 20 May 2008.
• In addition to being known as "Beijing Capital International Airport", other names for PEK include "北京首都国际机场" and "Běijīng Shǒudū Guójì Jīchǎng".