Nonstop flight route between St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom and Salalah, Oman:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between MoD St Athan (DGX), St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom and Salalah Airport (SLL), Salalah, Oman would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,917 miles (or 6,303 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 Salalah 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 Salalah 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):

• 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.
• 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.
• The MOD continued to negotiate the project with the Metrix Consortium, but the price rose several times, reaching £14 billion in mid-2009.
• RAF St Athan was also home for the Royal Air Force Administrative Apprentice Training School.
• In March 2004, however, DARA announced the loss of 550 jobs at St Athan as part of streamlining to make DARA more efficient and better able to compete with the private sector for lucrative aircraft repair contracts, but also because they lost out to a direct RAF bid for a contract to upgrade the air force's fleet of ageing Harrier jump jet aircraft.
• In 2009 building work was due to commence on a new defence training academy with its heart at St Athan.
• 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.
• The closest airport to MoD St Athan (DGX) is Cardiff Airport (CWL), which is located only 4 miles (6 kilometers) E of DGX.

Facts about Salalah Airport (SLL):

• In addition to being known as "Salalah Airport", another name for SLL is "مطار صلالة".
• Salalah Airport (SLL) has 2 runways.
• Because of Salalah Airport's relatively low elevation of 73 feet, planes can take off or land at Salalah 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 Salalah Airport (SLL) is Al Ghaydha Airport (AAY), which is located 140 miles (225 kilometers) WSW of SLL.
• The furthest airport from Salalah Airport (SLL) is Totegegie Airport (GMR), which is located 11,720 miles (18,862 kilometers) away in Mangareva, Gambier Islands, French Polynesia.
• Design of the airport takes to account future development projects and allows expansions to cater up to 6 million passengers per year when required.
• The Salalah International Airport is built to cater to 1 million passengers annually in its initial construction phase, and will be opened at the end of 2014.
• In 2011 planning and construction began for the new state-of-the-art Salalah International Airport.
• Salalah Airport opened in 1977.