Nonstop flight route between Chalkyitsik, Alaska, United States and Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Chalkyitsik Airport (CIK), Chalkyitsik, Alaska, United States and RAF Lakenheath (LKZ), Lakenheath, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,002 miles (or 6,441 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 Chalkyitsik 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 Chalkyitsik 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 Chalkyitsik Airport (CIK):

• Chalkyitsik Airport (CIK) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Chalkyitsik Airport (CIK) is Fort Yukon Airport (FYU), which is located 42 miles (67 kilometers) W of CIK.
• The furthest airport from Chalkyitsik Airport (CIK) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,139 miles (16,317 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• Because of Chalkyitsik Airport's relatively low elevation of 544 feet, planes can take off or land at Chalkyitsik 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.

Facts about RAF Lakenheath (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.
• 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.
• The closest airport to RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) is RAF Mildenhall (MHZ), which is located only 4 miles (7 kilometers) SW of LKZ.
• 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.
• Control of RAF Lakenheath was allocated to Third Air Force at South Ruislip Air Station, which had command of SAC B-29 operations in England.
• RAF Lakenheath, and nearby, RAF Mildenhall, are the two main U.S.