Nonstop flight route between Dakar, Senegal and Alconbury, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport (DKR), Dakar, Senegal and RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH), Alconbury, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,768 miles (or 4,454 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 Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport and RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102, 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 Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport and RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102. 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 Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport (DKR):

• Before the introduction of long-range jets in the mid-1970s, it used to be an important stopover point for the routes between Europe and South America, together with the Canary Islands.
• The furthest airport from Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport (DKR) is Kirakira Airport (IRA), which is nearly antipodal to Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport (meaning Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Kirakira Airport), and is located 12,138 miles (19,533 kilometers) away in Kirakira, Makira Island, Solomon Islands.
• Because of Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport's relatively low elevation of 85 feet, planes can take off or land at Léopold Sédar Senghor 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.
• The airport was a Space Shuttle landing site until 1987, when it was determined that a dip in the runway could damage the shuttle upon landing.
• The airport can handle jumbo jets, including the Airbus A340-600 from South African Airways, and the Boeing 777-200 from Air France.
• Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport (DKR) has 2 runways.
• In 2007, Patrick Smith, author of the Ask the Pilot column for Salon.com, called it the "World's Worst Airport", commenting that he found there "only squalor, an unnerving sense of confinement and to some extent danger".
• In addition to being known as "Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport", another name for DKR is "Aéroport international Léopold-Sédar-Senghor".
• The closest airport to Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport (DKR) is Kaolack Airport (KLC), which is located 105 miles (168 kilometers) ESE of DKR.
• The head office of Sénégal Airlines is located on the airport property.
• Léopold Sédar Senghor International Airport handled 1,500,000 passengers last year.

Facts about RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH):

• The group comprises six squadrons—security forces and civil engineer, air base, medical and services—and supports tenant units.
• This was the time of the Blitz, when many parts of Britain were being subjected to an almost nightly series of heavy air raids.
• The technical site on the north-west side was expanded where a single T2 hangar was also erected.
• A total of 67 bombers had been lost in RAF Bomber Command operations flown from Alconbury, eight were Blenheims and 59 Wellingtons.
• The furthest airport from RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,821 miles (19,024 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• In 1937, Royal Air Force Bomber Command was drawing up plans for dispersal of their aircraft in the event of air raids on its stations.
• RAF Alconbury is about 0.308 sq mi in area.
• RAF Alconbury is also the home of the 501st Combat Support Wing.
• The closest airport to RAF AlconburyUSAAF Station 102 (AYH) is Cambridge International Airport (CBG), which is located 20 miles (32 kilometers) ESE of AYH.