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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States and Beijing Nanyuan Airport (NAY), Beijing, China would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,938 miles (or 11,165 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 Beijing Nanyuan 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 Beijing Nanyuan 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):

• 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.
• 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.
• Other than 40 slot exemptions, flights into and out of DCA are not allowed to exceed 1,250 statute miles in any direction nonstop, in an effort to send air traffic to the larger but more distant Washington Dulles International Airport.
• The runway layout has changed little, except for the 1956 closure of a fourth, east–west runway now used for taxiing and aircraft parking.
• On March 23, 2011, the air traffic control supervisor on duty reportedly fell asleep during the night shift.
• 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.
• Until 1999, Runways 1/19 and 4/22 were designated 18/36 and 3/21.

Facts about Beijing Nanyuan Airport (NAY):

• In 2008, Nanyuan Airport witnessed a high growth rate.
• The closest airport to Beijing Nanyuan Airport (NAY) is Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK), which is located 23 miles (37 kilometers) NNE of NAY.
• The furthest airport from Beijing Nanyuan Airport (NAY) is Gobernador Edgardo Castello Airport (VDM), which is nearly antipodal to Beijing Nanyuan Airport (meaning Beijing Nanyuan Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Gobernador Edgardo Castello Airport), and is located 12,355 miles (19,884 kilometers) away in Viedma, Argentina.
• In addition to being known as "Beijing Nanyuan Airport", other names for NAY include "北京南苑机场" and "Běijīng Nányuàn Jīchǎng".
• Beijing Nanyuan Airport (NAY) currently has only 1 runway.