Nonstop flight route between Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia and Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from DRW to TBU:
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- About this route
- DRW Airport Information
- TBU Airport Information
- Facts about DRW
- Facts about TBU
- Map of Nearest Airports to DRW
- List of Nearest Airports to DRW
- Map of Furthest Airports from DRW
- List of Furthest Airports from DRW
- Map of Nearest Airports to TBU
- List of Nearest Airports to TBU
- Map of Furthest Airports from TBU
- List of Furthest Airports from TBU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Darwin International Airport (DRW), Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia and Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU), Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,605 miles (or 5,801 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 Darwin International Airport and Fuaʻamotu 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 Darwin International Airport and Fuaʻamotu 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: | DRW / YPDN |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia |
| GPS Coordinates: | 12°24'52"S by 130°52'36"E |
| Area Served: | Darwin, Northern Territory |
| Operator/Owner: | Darwin International Airport Pty Ltd (DIA) / RAAF Darwin |
| Airport Type: | Military/Public |
| Elevation: | 103 feet (31 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from DRW |
| More Information: | DRW Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | TBU / NFTF |
| Airport Name: | Fuaʻamotu International Airport |
| Location: | Nukuʻalofa, Tongatapu, Tonga |
| GPS Coordinates: | 21°14'27"S by 175°8'57"W |
| Area Served: | Nukuʻalofa, Tonga |
| Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Civil Aviation |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 126 feet (38 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from TBU |
| More Information: | TBU Maps & Info |
Facts about Darwin International Airport (DRW):
- Because of Darwin International Airport's relatively low elevation of 103 feet, planes can take off or land at Darwin 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.
- Darwin International Airport handled 1,743,734 passengers last year.
- In addition to being known as "Darwin International Airport", another name for DRW is "RAAF Base Darwin".
- Darwin International Airport (DRW) has 2 runways.
- 2012 and 2013 saw a major boost for Darwin Airport when foreign carriers Silk Air, Indonesia AirAsia, Philippine Airlines and Malaysia Airlines started direct flights to Singapore, Bali, Manila and Kuala Lumpur.
- The new passenger terminal, with four aerobridges, was opened in December 1991.
- The head office of Airnorth is on the airport property.
- In 1945 the Department of Aviation made the existing Darwin military airfield available for civil aviation purpose.
- The furthest airport from Darwin International Airport (DRW) is Cayenne – Félix Eboué Airport (CAY), which is located 11,867 miles (19,099 kilometers) away in Cayenne, French Guiana.
- The closest airport to Darwin International Airport (DRW) is Bathurst Island Airport (BRT), which is located 48 miles (77 kilometers) NNW of DRW.
Facts about Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU):
- Some short-haul international flights such as to Fiji or American Samoa also operate from Vavaʻu Island's Lupepauʻu Airport from time to time.
- The closest airport to Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) is Lifuka Island Airport (HPA), which is located 114 miles (183 kilometers) NNE of TBU.
- The furthest airport from Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) is Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport (TMR), which is nearly antipodal to Fuaʻamotu International Airport (meaning Fuaʻamotu International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport), and is located 12,322 miles (19,830 kilometers) away in Tamanrasset, Algeria.
- Fuaʻamotu International Airport (TBU) has 2 runways.
- Fuaʻamotu was originally built in 1942 by a civilian contractor for the US Army.
- Because of Fuaʻamotu International Airport's relatively low elevation of 126 feet, planes can take off or land at Fuaʻamotu 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.
- Peau Vavaʻu operate a Convair 580 subleased from Reef Air leased from New Zealand's Air Chathams to Haʻapai and Vavaʻu, and a Twin Otter to Niuafoʻou and Niuatoputapu.
