Nonstop flight route between Cooktown, Queensland, Australia and Pensacola, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Cooktown Airport (CTN), Cooktown, Queensland, Australia and Naval Air Station PensacolaForrest Sherman Field (NPA), Pensacola, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,973 miles (or 14,441 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 Cooktown Airport and Naval Air Station PensacolaForrest Sherman Field, 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 Cooktown Airport and Naval Air Station PensacolaForrest Sherman Field. 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 Cooktown Airport (CTN):

• Because of Cooktown Airport's relatively low elevation of 26 feet, planes can take off or land at Cooktown 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 closest airport to Cooktown Airport (CTN) is Lizard Island Airport (LZR), which is located 56 miles (91 kilometers) NNE of CTN.
• Cooktown Airport (CTN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Cooktown Airport (CTN) is Cesária Évora International Airport (VXE), which is located 11,782 miles (18,961 kilometers) away in São Vicente, Cape Verde.

Facts about Naval Air Station PensacolaForrest Sherman Field (NPA):

• Upon the entry of the United States into World War I on 6 April 1917, Pensacola, still the only naval air station, had 38 naval aviators, 163 enlisted men trained in aviation support, and 54 fixed-wing aircraft.
• Construction began in April 1826, and the Pensacola Navy Yard, also known as the Warrington Navy Yard, became one of the best equipped naval stations in the country.
• The closest airport to Naval Air Station PensacolaForrest Sherman Field (NPA) is NOLF Saufley Field (NUN), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) NNW of NPA.
• Because of Naval Air Station PensacolaForrest Sherman Field's relatively low elevation of 28 feet, planes can take off or land at Naval Air Station PensacolaForrest Sherman Field 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 site now occupied by NAS Pensacola has been controlled by varying nations.
• Realizing the advantages of the Pensacola harbor and the large timber reserves nearby for shipbuilding, in 1825 President John Quincy Adams and Secretary of the Navy Samuel Southard made arrangements to build a Navy Yard on the southern tip of Escambia County, where the air station is today.
• In addition to being known as "Naval Air Station PensacolaForrest Sherman Field", another name for NPA is "KNPA - FAA: NPA".
• The furthest airport from Naval Air Station PensacolaForrest Sherman Field (NPA) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,154 miles (17,951 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• Naval Air Station PensacolaForrest Sherman Field (NPA) has 3 runways.
• Pilot training requirements shifted upward to meet the demands for the Vietnam War, which occupied much of the 1960s and 1970s.