Nonstop flight route between Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Kobuk, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between King Shaka International (DUR), Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Kobuk Airport (OBU), Kobuk, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,838 miles (or 15,833 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 King Shaka International and Kobuk 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 King Shaka International and Kobuk 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 King Shaka International (DUR):

• Because of King Shaka International's relatively low elevation of 295 feet, planes can take off or land at King Shaka International 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.
• One of the objectives of the cargo terminal is to recapture local air freight traffic from JNB.
• It is unclear what the fate of the existing Durban International Airport will be now that KSIA is complete.
• The furthest airport from King Shaka International (DUR) is Hana Airport (HNM), which is located 11,682 miles (18,801 kilometers) away in Hana, Hawaii, United States.
• On 27 January 2014 the worlds largest passenger aircraft, an Airbus A380-800 of British Airways landed at KSIA becoming the first A380 to do so.
• The closest airport to King Shaka International (DUR) is Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) W of DUR.
• King Shaka International (DUR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The largest aircraft KSIA currently has scheduled services for is the Boeing 777-300ER, with Emirates operating Dubai–Durban, despite the fact that KSIA's runway length and terminal were designed to theoretically handle regular large airliners.

Facts about Kobuk Airport (OBU):

• In addition to being known as "Kobuk Airport", another name for OBU is "PAOB".
• Kobuk Airport is a state owned, public use airport located in Kobuk, a city in the Northwest Arctic Borough of the U.S.
• The closest airport to Kobuk Airport (OBU) is Dahl Creek Airport (DCK), which is located only 2 miles (3 kilometers) N of OBU.
• The furthest airport from Kobuk Airport (OBU) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 10,163 miles (16,356 kilometers) away in George, South Africa.
• Because of Kobuk Airport's relatively low elevation of 142 feet, planes can take off or land at Kobuk 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.
• As per the Federal Aviation Administration, this airport had 1,176 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 1,048 in 2009, and 1,255 in 2010.
• Kobuk Airport (OBU) currently has only 1 runway.
• For the 12-month period ending September 29, 2011, the airport had 5,000 aircraft operations, an average of 13 per day, 100% air taxi.