Nonstop flight route between Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Simferopol, Ukraine:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between King Shaka International (DUR), Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Simferopol International Airport (SIP), Simferopol, Ukraine would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,162 miles (or 8,308 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 Simferopol 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 King Shaka International and Simferopol 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 King Shaka International (DUR):

• 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.
• In 2013 Skytrax announced that King Shaka International Airport was the best airport in the world handling under 5 million passengers.
• The closest airport to King Shaka International (DUR) is Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) W of DUR.
• The cargo terminal will form one component of the Dube TradePort's TradeZone Precinct, which will additionally be home to trade and logistics warehousing as well as cargo and light industry activities that require quick access to air cargo services, and will cover an area of 36 hectares.
• Mount Moreland, a small community located 2.6 km south of the airport, is an important roosting site for the European Barn Swallow.
• King Shaka International (DUR) currently has only 1 runway.
• As a result, a study into the risks of bird strikes at KSIA was commissioned, with special attention being paid to the Barn Swallows at Mount Moreland.
• The final obstacle was a delay in the approval of the project's Environmental Impact Assessment by the South African Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism.
• 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.

Facts about Simferopol International Airport (SIP):

• In the summer of 1989, the airport was designated as a "western alternate airport" for landing the Buran spacecraft.
• Because of Simferopol International Airport's relatively low elevation of 639 feet, planes can take off or land at Simferopol 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.
• Following the 2014 Russian invasion of Ukraine the airport was seized on 28 February 2014 by Russian forces.
• The closest airport to Simferopol International Airport (SIP) is Kerch Airport (KHC), which is located 120 miles (193 kilometers) ENE of SIP.
• Simferopol International Airport (SIP) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Simferopol International Airport (SIP) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,942 miles (17,609 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Since March 2014, all international flights to Simferopol Airport with the exception of flights originating from Russia, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan have been cancelled or suspended due to Crimea's disputed status.
• In addition to being known as "Simferopol International Airport", other names for SIP include "Міжнародний аеропорт "Сімферополь"", "Международный аэропорт "Симферополь"" and "URFF".
• On 11 March, Russian forces took over the control tower and closed the Crimean airspace until the end of week.