Nonstop flight route between College Park, Maryland, United States and Cape Town, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between College Park Airport (CGS), College Park, Maryland, United States and Cape Town International Airport (CPT), Cape Town, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,906 miles (or 12,723 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 College Park Airport and Cape Town 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 College Park Airport and Cape Town 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 College Park Airport (CGS):

• Civilian aviation began at College Park with Rex Smith, an inventor and patent attorney, who operated the Rex Smith Aeroplane Company.
• College Park Airport (CGS) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to College Park Airport (CGS) is Bolling Air Force Base (BOF), which is located only 11 miles (17 kilometers) SSW of CGS.
• In 1920, Emile and Henry Berliner brought their theories of vertical flight to the field and in 1924 made the first controlled helicopter flight.
• Because of College Park Airport's relatively low elevation of 48 feet, planes can take off or land at College Park 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 1937, the Engineering & Research Corporation, based in nearby Riverdale, Maryland, used the airport to test fly the early model of the Ercoupe, an airplane designed to be spin-proof.
• The furthest airport from College Park Airport (CGS) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,684 miles (18,803 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The road to the airport is named in honor of Corporal Frank S.

Facts about Cape Town International Airport (CPT):

• Because of Cape Town International Airport's relatively low elevation of 151 feet, planes can take off or land at Cape Town 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.
• The furthest airport from Cape Town International Airport (CPT) is Princeville Airport (HPV), which is located 11,616 miles (18,693 kilometers) away in Hanalei, Hawaii, United States.
• The closest airport to Cape Town International Airport (CPT) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 217 miles (349 kilometers) E of CPT.
• There is no direct rail access to Cape Town International Airport.
• Cape Town International Airport is approximately 20 kilometres from the city centre and is accessible from the N2 freeway, with Airport Approach Road providing a direct link between the N2 and the airport.
• Cape Town International Airport (CPT) has 2 runways.
• The MyCiTi bus rapid transit system provides a shuttle service connecting the airport with the Civic Centre bus station in the city centre.
• Cape Town International Airport handled 8,505,563 passengers last year.
• Retail outlets are located on the lower level of the terminal at landside, as well as airside at the departure gates.
• With the fall of apartheid in the early 1990s, ownership of the airport was transferred from the state to the newly formed Airports Company South Africa, and the airport was renamed to the politically neutral Cape Town International Airport.