Nonstop flight route between Dover, Delaware, United States and Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Dover Air Force Base (DOV), Dover, Delaware, United States and O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB), Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,036 miles (or 12,932 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 Dover Air Force Base and O. R. Tambo 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 Dover Air Force Base and O. R. Tambo 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 Dover Air Force Base (DOV):

• Construction of Municipal Airport, Dover Airdrome began in March 1941 and the facility was opened on December 17, 1941.
• By 2008, the air traffic tower serving the airfield, built in 1955, was the oldest such tower in use in the United States Air Force.
• In addition to being known as "Dover Air Force Base", another name for DOV is "Dover AFB".
• Dover AFB is home to the 436th Airlift Wing of the Air Mobility Command, known as the "Eagle Wing", and the AMC-gained 512th Airlift Wing of the Air Force Reserve Command, referred to as the "Liberty Wing".
• Full operational capability was restored to Dover in September, and seven P-47 Thunderbolt squadrons arrived for training in preparation for eventual involvement in the European Theater.
• After the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, the remains of the seven astronauts were transferred to Dover AFB.
• The closest airport to Dover Air Force Base (DOV) is Millville Municipal Airport (MIV), which is located 27 miles (43 kilometers) NE of DOV.
• Dover AFB is also the home for the largest military mortuary in the Department of Defense, and has been used for processing military personnel killed in both war and peacetime.
• The furthest airport from Dover Air Force Base (DOV) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,750 miles (18,909 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Some of the more memorable flights during the post-war period included the airdrop and test firing of a Minuteman I intercontinental ballistic missile and the delivery of a 40-ton superconducting magnet to Moscow during the Cold War, for which the crew received the Mackay Trophy.

Facts about O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB):

• The furthest airport from O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,979 miles (19,279 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• Because of O. R. Tambo International Airport's high elevation of 5,558 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at JNB. Combined with a high temperature, this could make JNB a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• Critics noted the considerable expense involved in renaming the airport, and the decision to use a politician as the name would be obscure, confusing and in some instances, offensive.
• There are two parallel north-south runways and a disused cross runway.
• O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) has 2 runways.
• A second terminal between the two runways has also been mooted, which is proposed for completion by 2012.
• In addition to being known as "O. R. Tambo International Airport", another name for JNB is "Johannesburg International Airport".
• The closest airport to O. R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) is Rand Airport (QRA), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) SW of JNB.
• The airport was founded in 1952 as "Jan Smuts Airport", two years after his death, near the town of Kempton Park on the East Rand.
• O. R. Tambo International Airport handled 18,794,897 passengers last year.