Nonstop flight route between Elenak, Marshall Islands and Fairford, England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Elenak Airport (EAL), Elenak, Marshall Islands and RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,168 miles (or 13,145 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 Elenak Airport and RAF Fairford, 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 Elenak Airport and RAF Fairford. 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 Elenak Airport (EAL):

• The closest airport to Elenak Airport (EAL) is Lae Airport (LML), which is located 48 miles (78 kilometers) SW of EAL.
• The furthest airport from Elenak Airport (EAL) is RAF Ascension (ASI), which is nearly antipodal to Elenak Airport (meaning Elenak Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from RAF Ascension), and is located 12,311 miles (19,812 kilometers) away in Georgetown, Ascension Island, Saint Helena.

Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):

• The runway was completed in 1953, and served as a forward airbase for the first Convair B-36 Peacemaker aircraft from Carswell Air Force Base, Texas.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• Fairford was chosen in 1969 as the British test centre for the Concorde aircraft, which continued until 1977.
• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
• The 422nd ABG at RAF Croughton and the 420th Air Base Squadron are responsible for the day-to-day operations of RAF Fairford, ensuring that it has adequate resources.
• On 12 May 2005, USAFE activated the 501st Combat Support Wing, with headquarters at RAF Alconbury, to provide support to its GSUs in the United Kingdom.