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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States and Malta International Airport (MLA), Luqa, Malta would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,800 miles (or 7,724 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 Malta International 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 Malta International 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):

• Terminals B and C opened in 1997, replacing a collection of airline-specific terminals built during the 1960s.
• Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) has 3 runways.
• Reagan National Airport is subject to a federally mandated perimeter limitation and may not accommodate nonstop flights to or from cities beyond 1,250-statute-mile, with limited exceptions.
• 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.
• 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.
• Service to the airport's Metro station began in 1977.
• The runway layout has changed little, except for the 1956 closure of a fourth, east–west runway now used for taxiing and aircraft parking.
• Until 1999, Runways 1/19 and 4/22 were designated 18/36 and 3/21.
• 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.

Facts about Malta International Airport (MLA):

• In addition to being known as "Malta International Airport", other names for MLA include "Luqa Airport" and "Valletta Airport".
• Malta International Airport (MLA) has 2 runways.
• Arriva Malta buses serve the airport.
• Car hire companies including Avis, Hertz, Thrifty, First Car Rental and Active Car Rental are located in the Welcomers' Hall.
• Ryanair based one aircraft in Malta from May 2010, increasing to two from May 2012.
• Services run between 2300 and 0400 on Friday and Saturday evenings, all year round.
• The closest airport to Malta International Airport (MLA) is Xewkija / Gozo Heliport (GZM), which is located only 16 miles (26 kilometers) NW of MLA.
• The furthest airport from Malta International Airport (MLA) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,639 miles (18,731 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The foundation stone of the present air terminal was laid in September 1989 and inaugurated in record time 29 months later in February 1992.
• The Malta Airport MetOffice is part of the Malta International Airport and provides the function of a national meteorological service for Malta.
• Malta International Airport handled 405,200 passengers last year.
• Because of Malta International Airport's relatively low elevation of 300 feet, planes can take off or land at Malta International 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.