Nonstop flight route between Cairns, Queensland, Australia and Alta, Norway:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Cairns Airport (CNS), Cairns, Queensland, Australia and Alta Airport (ALF), Alta, Norway would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,059 miles (or 12,970 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 Cairns Airport and Alta 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 Cairns Airport and Alta 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 Cairns Airport (CNS):

• The closest airport to Cairns Airport (CNS) is Mareeba Airfield (MRG), which is located 26 miles (41 kilometers) WSW of CNS.
• Cairns Airport handled 3,848,728 passengers last year.
• Because of Cairns Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Cairns 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 Cairns Airport (CNS) is Agostinho Neto Airport (NTO), which is located 11,832 miles (19,041 kilometers) away in Ponta do Sol, Santo Antão, Cape Verde.
• Cairns Airport (CNS) currently has only 1 runway.
• During the 1970s, Australia's two domestic airlines Trans Australia Airlines and Ansett provided regular scheduled services to most Australian capital cities and also Papua New Guinea, while in 1975 Air Niugini became the first international airline to commence flights out of Cairns, to Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea.
• Cairns Airport goes back to 1928 when Tom McDonald started flying his de Havilland Gipsy Moth off a sand ridge near the present airport.
• A$200 million redevelopment of the Domestic terminal started in August 2007 and was completed in 2010.
• Short-term and long-term parking, including a covered car park and parking for people with a disability are located within the public carparks adjacent to both the Domestic and International Terminals.

Facts about Alta Airport (ALF):

• The first airport in Alta was built by the Wehrmacht during the German occupation of Norway.
• Alta Airport (ALF) currently has only 1 runway.
• Activity at Alta Airport peaked in the following years.
• Services were at first operated by Scandinavian Airlines System.
• The furthest airport from Alta Airport (ALF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,502 miles (16,901 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Alta Airport handled 353,051 passengers last year.
• The airport is located at Elvebakken and Altagård, on the southern shore of the Altafjord and at the mouth of the river of Altaelva, which is about 4 kilometers east of Bossekop in the town of Alta.
• Because of Alta Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Alta 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 addition to being known as "Alta Airport", another name for ALF is "Alta lufthavn".
• Alta Airport's catchment area includes Kautokeino, which has no airport.
• SAS Commuter was established in 1988 and started operations in Northern Norway in May 1990, making Alta its central hub for Finnmark.
• The closest airport to Alta Airport (ALF) is Lakselv Airport, Banak (LKL), which is located 38 miles (62 kilometers) E of ALF.
• The location in Elvebakken was somewhat controversial in Alta, especially as the airport would be located so close to the town center, potentially causing noise pollution.