Nonstop flight route between Columbia, Missouri, United States and Falkland Islands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Columbia Regional Airport (COU), Columbia, Missouri, United States and RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN), Falkland Islands would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,585 miles (or 10,597 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 Columbia Regional Airport and RAF Mount Pleasant, 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 Columbia Regional Airport and RAF Mount Pleasant. 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 Columbia Regional Airport (COU):

• The closest airport to Columbia Regional Airport (COU) is Jefferson City Memorial Airport (JEF), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) SSE of COU.
• In 2008, Northwest Airlink replaced US Airways Express using Saab 340 aircraft with service to Memphis.
• Columbia Regional Airport is a city owned, public use airport located 10 nautical miles southeast of the central business district of Columbia, a city in Boone County, Missouri, United States.
• Columbia Regional Airport covers an area of 1,538 acres at an elevation of 889 feet above mean sea level.
• Columbia Regional Airport (COU) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Columbia Regional Airport (COU) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,886 miles (17,519 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of Columbia Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 889 feet, planes can take off or land at Columbia Regional 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 Mount Pleasant (MPN):

• Flights of Phantoms were rotated through the airfield until 1992 when they were replaced with Tornado F3s.
• The furthest airport from RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Mohe Gulian Airport (OHE), which is nearly antipodal to RAF Mount Pleasant (meaning RAF Mount Pleasant is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mohe Gulian Airport), and is located 12,353 miles (19,879 kilometers) away in Mohe, Heilongjiang, China.
• On 2 April 2012, an Uruguayan air company, Air Class Líneas Aéreas, gained permission from the Uruguayan Ministry of Defence to start a commercial flight to the Falkland Islands.
• The British government felt that Stanley airfield was not the best option for a large, permanent station and decided to construct a new RAF station and make it the centrepiece of considerably strengthened air defences for the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.
• Using the IATA airport code MPN, RAF Mount Pleasant also acts as the Falkland Islands' only international airport, along with its military role.
• The closest airport to RAF Mount Pleasant (MPN) is Port Stanley Airport (PSY), which is located 30 miles (49 kilometers) ENE of MPN.
• A flight of Westland Sea King helicopters for support and search and rescue has been located at Mount Pleasant since November 2007.