Nonstop flight route between Charlottesville, Virginia, United States and Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport (CHO), Charlottesville, Virginia, United States and RAF Lakenheath (LKZ), Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,765 miles (or 6,059 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 Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport and RAF Lakenheath, 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 Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport and RAF Lakenheath. 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 Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport (CHO):

• The airport has a 60,000 sq ft terminal with on-site rental cars, ground transportation, and food service and gifts from "The Market" Gourmet Deli & Gift Shop.General aviation facilities include an executive terminal offering a full-service by the fixed base operator, Landmark Aviation, flight schools, emergency medical transportation provided by the UVA Hospital's Pegasus service and aircraft charter firms.
• Because of Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport's relatively low elevation of 639 feet, planes can take off or land at Charlottesville–Albemarle 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.
• This facility is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems, which categorized it as a primary commercial service airport.
• Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport (CHO) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport (CHO) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,627 miles (18,711 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport (CHO) is Orange County Airport (OMH), which is located 23 miles (38 kilometers) ENE of CHO.

Facts about RAF Lakenheath (LKZ):

• Cold War tensions with the Soviet Union in Europe began as early as 1946.
• The closest airport to RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is RAF Mildenhall (MHZ), which is located only 4 miles (7 kilometers) SW of LKZ.
• In response to the threat by the Soviet Union, by the 1948 Berlin blockade, President Truman decided to realign USAFE into a permanent combat-capable force.
• In 1941, hard runways were put down with the main runway, 04/22, being 2,000 yards, and the subsidiaries, 12/30 at 1,300 yards and 16/34 at 1,400 yards.
• Lakenheath Airfield was used by RAF flying units on detachment late in 1941.
• The increasing tension of the Cold War lead to a re-evaluation of these deployments, and by 1953 SAC bombers began to move its heavy bomb groups further west, behind RAF fighter forces, to RAF Brize Norton, RAF Greenham Common, RAF Upper Heyford and RAF Fairford, while its shorter-range B-47 were sent to East Anglia.
• Taking part in more than 350 operations, more than half mine-laying, 149 Squadron had one of the lowest percentage loss rates of all Stirling squadrons.
• Aircraft of the 48th FW carry the tail code "LN".
• In April 1947, RAF Bomber Command returned to Lakenheath and had the runways repaired, resurfaced, and readied for operations by May 1948.
• The furthest airport from RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,827 miles (19,034 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• By the time construction ended the war with Germany was over and RAF Lakenheath was put on a care and maintenance status.