Nonstop flight route between St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom and Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MoD St Athan (DGX), St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom and Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz International Airport (FLN), Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,112 miles (or 9,836 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 MoD St Athan and Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz 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 MoD St Athan and Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz 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 MoD St Athan (DGX):

• The closest airport to MoD St Athan (DGX) is Cardiff Airport (CWL), which is located only 4 miles (6 kilometers) E of DGX.
• MOD St Athan is a large Ministry of Defence unit near the village of St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan, southern Wales.
• The furthest airport from MoD St Athan (DGX) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,960 miles (19,248 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• Because of MoD St Athan's relatively low elevation of 163 feet, planes can take off or land at MoD St Athan 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.
• MoD St Athan (DGX) currently has only 1 runway.
• RAF St Athan has been used to house a number of army units throughout its life and, in 2003, the 1st Battalion, Welsh Guards moved from Aldershot to St Athan - the first time they have been based in Wales since they were formed in 1915.
• St Athan also became the major RAF maintenance base for Vulcan, Victor, Buccaner, Phantom, Harrier, Tornado, Jaguar, Hawk and VC10 aircraft, originally under direct RAF control, but latterly under the auspices of the Defence Aviation Repair Agency.
• On 26 August 1993 an ATC civilian instructor was seriously injured and the RAF Volunteer Reserve pilot, Group Captain Roger Sweatman, was killed when their Chipmunk trainer, on an air experience flight, crashed after encountering difficulties during a simulated emergency low-height manoeuvre on take-off.

Facts about Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz International Airport (FLN):

• Because of Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz International Airport's relatively low elevation of 16 feet, planes can take off or land at Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz 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.
• Between 1927 and 1932, the then known as Campeche Field was also used by the French aviators of the Compagnie Générale Aéropostale for its operations in Florianópolis.
• Between 1942 and 1945 the runway 03/21, apron, control tower and passenger terminal were built.
• The airport is located 14 km from downtown Florianópolis.
• The airport was built on the site of an old Air Naval Base, which operated until 1941, when its jurisdiction changed to the Brazilian Air Force.
• Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz International Airport handled 3,395,253 passengers last year.
• In addition to being known as "Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz International Airport", another name for FLN is "Aeroporto Internacional de Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz".
• Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz International Airport (FLN) has 2 runways.
• The closest airport to Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz International Airport (FLN) is Navegantes Airport (NVT), which is located 55 miles (89 kilometers) N of FLN.
• The furthest airport from Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz International Airport (FLN) is Kikai Airport (KKX), which is nearly antipodal to Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz International Airport (meaning Florianópolis-Hercílio Luz International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Kikai Airport), and is located 12,334 miles (19,849 kilometers) away in Kikaiga Shima, Kikai-Shima Island, Japan.
• It is operated by Infraero.