Nonstop flight route between Cold Bay, Alaska, United States and St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Cold Bay Airport (CDB), Cold Bay, Alaska, United States and MoD St Athan (DGX), St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,975 miles (or 8,007 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 Cold Bay Airport and MoD St Athan, 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 Cold Bay Airport and MoD St Athan. 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 Cold Bay Airport (CDB):

• The airfield was named Thornbrough Air Force Base in 1948 for Captain George W.
• Cold Bay Airport (CDB) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Cold Bay Airport (CDB) is King Cove Airport (KVC), which is located only 19 miles (31 kilometers) ESE of CDB.
• On October 30, 2013 a Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300 on the flight from Tokyo to San Francisco landed on the airport due to an engine shut-down.
• On September 8, 1973 World Airways Flight 802 a Military Airlift Command cargo flight crashed into Mount Dutton when on approach to Cold Bay.
• The furthest airport from Cold Bay Airport (CDB) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,968 miles (17,652 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
• Because of Cold Bay Airport's relatively low elevation of 102 feet, planes can take off or land at Cold Bay 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.
• In addition to being known as "Cold Bay Airport", other names for CDB include "Cold Bay Air Force Station" and "Fort Randall Army Airfield".
• A myth describes Cold Bay Airport as an alternate landing site for Space Shuttles, but the National Aeronautics and Space Administration has stated that it was never so designated, and it was not within the entry crossrange capability of Space Shuttles.

Facts about MoD St Athan (DGX):

• In 2006, the Special Forces Support Group was raised at St Athan and the Welsh Guards returned to London.
• The last aircraft to be serviced at St Athan, a Vickers VC10, departed the site on 23 February 2012.
• The only squadrons to operate out of St Athan on a regular basis are the University of Wales Air Squadron, flying Grob Tutors and No 634 Volunteer Gliding Squadron using Vigilant T.1s.
• Because of MoD St Athan's relatively low elevation of 163 feet, planes can take off or land at MoD St Athan 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.
• MoD St Athan (DGX) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to MoD St Athan (DGX) is Cardiff Airport (CWL), which is located only 4 miles (6 kilometers) E of DGX.
• The furthest airport from MoD St Athan (DGX) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,960 miles (19,248 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• After the war, airmen of the Airframe and Engine trades continued to train at St Athan, but in 1955 this training dispersed to RAF Kirkham and RAF Weeton.