Nonstop flight route between Christchurch, New Zealand and Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Christchurch International Airport (CHC), Christchurch, New Zealand and Erbil International Airport (EBL), Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,708 miles (or 15,623 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 Christchurch International Airport and Erbil 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 Christchurch International Airport and Erbil 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 Christchurch International Airport (CHC):

• With the development of Antarctic scientific expeditions, since the 1950s Christchurch Airport has been the base for all Antarctic flights operated by the United States Navy, United States Air Force, Air National Guard and Royal New Zealand Air Force as part of Operation Deep Freeze.
• The size of the new integrated terminal at Christchurch Airport is 77,591m².
• The furthest airport from Christchurch International Airport (CHC) is A Coruña Airport (LCG), which is nearly antipodal to Christchurch International Airport (meaning Christchurch International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from A Coruña Airport), and is located 12,389 miles (19,939 kilometers) away in A Coruña, Spain.
• The prevailing wind in Christchurch is from the north-east and to a lesser extent from the south-west, but the city is also affected by Canterbury's Nor'wester foehn wind.
• The closest airport to Christchurch International Airport (CHC) is Ashburton Aerodrome (ASG), which is located 47 miles (75 kilometers) SW of CHC.
• In early 2009 work on the new terminal commenced.
• A drop off and pick up lane is available on the ground floor of the multi-level carpark building.
• Because of Christchurch International Airport's relatively low elevation of 123 feet, planes can take off or land at Christchurch 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.
• Christchurch International Airport (CHC) has 3 runways.
• Christchurch International Airport handled 556,096 passengers last year.

Facts about Erbil International Airport (EBL):

• Erbil International Airport offers the least expensive aviation fuel in Iraq.
• The airport was built at the beginning of the 1970s as an Iraqi military base.
• Erbil International Airport, is the main airport of Erbil city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
• At a cost of $US550 million, constructed by a Turkish company, the new airport and terminal building opened on 3 March 2010.
• The closest airport to Erbil International Airport (EBL) is Sulaimaniyah International Airport (ISU), which is located 89 miles (143 kilometers) ESE of EBL.
• In addition to being known as "Erbil International Airport", other names for EBL include "Firokaxaney Nêwdewletî Hewlêr" and "فڕۆکه‌خانه‌ی نێوده‌وڵه‌تی هه‌ولێر".
• Erbil International Airport (EBL) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Erbil International Airport (EBL) is Totegegie Airport (GMR), which is located 11,525 miles (18,548 kilometers) away in Mangareva, Gambier Islands, French Polynesia.