Nonstop flight route between Chengdu, Sichuan, China and Knob Noster, Missouri, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport (CTU), Chengdu, Sichuan, China and Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL), Knob Noster, Missouri, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,517 miles (or 12,098 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 Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport and Whiteman Air Force Base, 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 Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport and Whiteman Air Force Base. 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 Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport (CTU):

• Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport (CTU) has 2 runways.
• When China Southwest Airlines existed, its headquarters were on the airport property.
• Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport handled 31,500,000 passengers last year.
• In addition to being known as "Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport", other names for CTU include "成都双流国际机场" and "Chéngdū Shuāngliú Guójì Jīchǎng".
• On December 12, 1956, the Shuangguisi Airport was put under civil aviation, which was then formally listed as a civil aviation airport and renamed Chengdu Shuangliu Airport.
• The closest airport to Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport (CTU) is Mianyang Nanjiao Airport (MIG), which is located 75 miles (121 kilometers) NE of CTU.
• The furthest airport from Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport (CTU) is La Florida Airport (LSC), which is nearly antipodal to Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport (meaning Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from La Florida Airport), and is located 12,144 miles (19,543 kilometers) away in La Serena, Chile.
• In 2013 United Airlines announced it would start a thrice-weekly flight from San Francisco to Chengdu, operated with Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.

Facts about Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL):

• Several months after the air division's activation, on 30 Sep 1990, the 509th Bomb Wing moved its headquarters to Whiteman albeit in an unmanned and non-operational state.
• Other aircraft assigned to Whiteman include the A-10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack fighter.
• In addition to being known as "Whiteman Air Force Base", another name for SZL is "Whiteman AFB".
• In May 1942, construction workers descended upon an area known to locals as the "Blue Flats" because of the color of the soil and began building a railroad spur for the new air base.
• The Navy Reserve's Maritime Expeditionary Security Division 11, which provides light, mobile, short-duration, point defense Anti-Terrorism Force Protection forces for USN ships and aircraft and other high value assets in locations where U.S.
• The furthest airport from Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,815 miles (17,405 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Whiteman Air Force Base (SZL) is Sedalia Regional Airport (DMO), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) E of SZL.
• Named in honor of 2d Lieutenant George Allison Whiteman.
• In June 1961, the Department of Defense chose Whiteman to host the fourth Minuteman ICBM wing.