Nonstop flight route between Cold Bay, Alaska, United States and Kirkwall, Orkney Islands, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Cold Bay Airport (CDB), Cold Bay, Alaska, United States and Kirkwall Airport (KOI), Kirkwall, Orkney Islands, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,470 miles (or 7,194 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 Kirkwall 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 Cold Bay Airport and Kirkwall 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 Cold Bay Airport (CDB):

• Cold Bay Airport is a state owned, public use airport located in Cold Bay, a city in the Aleutians East Borough of the U.S.
• In addition to being known as "Cold Bay Airport", other names for CDB include "Cold Bay Air Force Station" and "Fort Randall Army Airfield".
• On September 8, 1973 World Airways Flight 802 a Military Airlift Command cargo flight crashed into Mount Dutton when on approach to Cold Bay.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• The airfield was named Thornbrough Air Force Base in 1948 for Captain George W.
• Cold Bay Airport (CDB) has 2 runways.
• According to Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 9,105 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 8,968 enplanements in 2009, and 9,261 in 2010.
• The closest airport to Cold Bay Airport (CDB) is King Cove Airport (KVC), which is located only 19 miles (31 kilometers) ESE of CDB.

Facts about Kirkwall Airport (KOI):

• The furthest airport from Kirkwall Airport (KOI) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,525 miles (18,548 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Kirkwall Airport (KOI) is Stronsay Airport (SOY), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) NE of KOI.
• Because of Kirkwall Airport's relatively low elevation of 58 feet, planes can take off or land at Kirkwall 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.
• Kirkwall Airport handled 145,897 passengers last year.
• Kirkwall Airport (KOI) has 2 runways.