Nonstop flight route between Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Moscow, Russia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between King Shaka International (DUR), Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and Vnukovo International Airport (VKO), Moscow, Russia would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,899 miles (or 9,493 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 Vnukovo 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 Vnukovo 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):

• 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.
• King Shaka International (DUR) currently has only 1 runway.
• In response to the study, ACSA contracted De-Tect Inc.
• The check-in concourse, located on the upper floor, contains 72 check-in counters and 18 self-service kiosks, as well as ticket offices for the various airlines operating out of the airport.
• On 8 December 2009, it was reported that "King Shaka International Airport" was indeed the most popular name for the new airport.
• The closest airport to King Shaka International (DUR) is Pietermaritzburg Airport (PZB), which is located 43 miles (69 kilometers) W of DUR.
• Neighbouring communities are Tongaat to the north-west, Verulam to the south-west, and Umdloti to the south-east.
• 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.
• Although the larger airport was built to grow the area's international services, it is also a key airport for domestic services throughout South Africa, serving the "Golden Triangle" between Cape Town International Airport, OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, and KSIA itself with 7 airlines.
• In 2013 Skytrax announced that King Shaka International Airport was the best airport in the world handling under 5 million passengers.

Facts about Vnukovo International Airport (VKO):

• Vnukovo is Europe’s busiest airport for international flights by larger private planes.
• The closest airport to Vnukovo International Airport (VKO) is Ostafyevo International Airport (OSF), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) ESE of VKO.
• Because of Vnukovo International Airport's relatively low elevation of 686 feet, planes can take off or land at Vnukovo 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 can handle a maximum of 10,100 passengers per hour, and 4,000 people are employed there.
• The first passenger flights of the IL-18 and Tu-114 were also made from Vnukovo Airport.
• In addition to being known as "Vnukovo International Airport", another name for VKO is "Международный Аэропорт Внуково".
• Vnukovo Airport is equipped with a VIP hall, which is used by many political leaders and important people visiting Russia.
• The expansion plans include lengthening one of the two V-configured runways to 3,800 m and upgrading the instrument landing system from the present CAT II to CAT III.
• Vnukovo International Airport (VKO) has 2 runways.
• Vnukovo International Airport handled 11,175,100 passengers last year.
• The furthest airport from Vnukovo International Airport (VKO) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,747 miles (17,296 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.