Nonstop flight route between Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States and Khost, Afghanistan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States and Khost Airport (KHT), Khost, Afghanistan would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,019 miles (or 11,296 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 Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Khost 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 Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Khost 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 Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA):

• Service to the airport's Metro station began in 1977.
• The Washington National Airport Terminal and South Hangar Line were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997.
• Because of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport's relatively low elevation of 15 feet, planes can take off or land at Ronald Reagan Washington National 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 Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is Bolling Air Force Base (BOF), which is located only 1 miles (2 kilometers) ESE of DCA.
• Despite the expansions, efforts have been made to restrict the growth of the airport.
• Although the need for a better airport was acknowledged in 37 studies conducted between 1926 and 1938, there was a statutory prohibition against federal development of airports.
• Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) has 3 runways.
• In 1999, Senator John McCain of Arizona introduced legislation to remove the 1,250-statute-mile restriction, infuriating some local residents concerned about noise and traffic from increased service by larger, long-haul aircraft.
• On March 23, 2011, the air traffic control supervisor on duty reportedly fell asleep during the night shift.
• The furthest airport from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,682 miles (18,800 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.

Facts about Khost Airport (KHT):

• The closest airport to Khost Airport (KHT) is Bannu Airport (BNP), which is located 41 miles (67 kilometers) SE of KHT.
• Khost Airport (KHT) currently has only 1 runway.
• Expanded by the Soviets in the 1980s to support bombing activity during the Soviet war in Afghanistan, it has packed dirt runways now maintained by the U.S.
• The furthest airport from Khost Airport (KHT) is Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which is nearly antipodal to Khost Airport (meaning Khost Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mataveri International Airport), and is located 12,009 miles (19,326 kilometers) away in Easter Island, Chile.
• In addition to being known as "Khost Airport", other names for KHT include "Khost Airport (Khost)", "دخوست هوائی ډګر" and "KDH".
• In December 2009, seven CIA employees were killed in a suicide attack at the nearby Forward Operating Base Chapman.