Nonstop flight route between Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States and Nairobi, Kenya:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from DCA to NBO:
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- About this route
- DCA Airport Information
- NBO Airport Information
- Facts about DCA
- Facts about NBO
- Map of Nearest Airports to DCA
- List of Nearest Airports to DCA
- Map of Furthest Airports from DCA
- List of Furthest Airports from DCA
- Map of Nearest Airports to NBO
- List of Nearest Airports to NBO
- Map of Furthest Airports from NBO
- List of Furthest Airports from NBO
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States and Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO), Nairobi, Kenya would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,552 miles (or 12,155 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 Jomo Kenyatta 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 Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | DCA / KDCA |
| Airport Name: | Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport |
| Location: | Arlington County, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 38°51'7"N by 77°2'16"W |
| Area Served: | Washington Metropolitan Area |
| Operator/Owner: | Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 15 feet (5 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 3 |
| View all routes: | Routes from DCA |
| More Information: | DCA Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | NBO / HKJK |
| Airport Name: | Jomo Kenyatta International Airport |
| Location: | Nairobi, Kenya |
| GPS Coordinates: | 1°19'6"S by 36°55'32"E |
| Area Served: | Nairobi |
| Operator/Owner: | Kenya Airports Authority |
| Airport Type: | Joint (Civil and Military) |
| Elevation: | 5327 feet (1,624 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from NBO |
| More Information: | NBO Maps & Info |
Facts about Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (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.
- 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.
- The runway layout has changed little, except for the 1956 closure of a fourth, east–west runway now used for taxiing and aircraft parking.
- Hoover Field, near the present site of the Pentagon, was the first major terminal to be developed in the Capital area, opening its doors in 1926.
- 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.
- When visibility and ceiling are below minimums for the River Visual and southerly winds restrict northbound runway operations, aircraft fly an offset localizer or GPS approach to Runway 19, again involving a final turn moments before touchdown, or they fly a VOR or GPS approach to either of the shorter Runways 15 and 22, which are marginally long enough for airline jets.
- In 1984 Secretary of Transportation Elizabeth Dole appointed a commission to study transferring National and Dulles Airports from the Federal Aviation Administration to a local entity, which could use airport revenues to finance improvements.
- 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.
Facts about Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO):
- The original terminal, located on the north side of the runway, is used by the Kenya Air Force and is sometimes referred as Old Embakasi Airport.
- The airport served 5,803,635 passengers in 2011, making it the ninth-busiest airport in Africa by total passengers.
- A new instrument landing system-equipped runway 5,500 metres in length has been approved for construction at a cost of 12.8 billion Kenyan shillings.
- Once complete, the terminal will have 60 check-in positions, 32 air bridges and eight remote gates.
- Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) is Atuona Airport (AUQ), which is located 11,621 miles (18,703 kilometers) away in Atuona, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.
- After Kenya's independence in 1964, the airport was renamed Nairobi International Airport to more accurately reflect the city it served.
- Because of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport's high elevation of 5,327 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at NBO. Combined with a high temperature, this could make NBO a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- The closest airport to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) is Wilson Airport (WIL), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) W of NBO.
- Jomo Kenyatta International Airport handled 580,363 passengers last year.
