Nonstop flight route between Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Akureyri, Iceland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Akureyri Airport (AEY), Akureyri, Iceland would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,329 miles (or 5,357 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 Elmendorf Air Force Base and Akureyri 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 Elmendorf Air Force Base and Akureyri 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 Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF):

• The closest airport to Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Merrill Field (MRI), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of EDF.
• Despite a diminished number of personnel and aircraft, a turning point in Elmendorf's history occurred in 1970 with the arrival of the 43d Tactical Fighter Squadron in June 1970 from MacDill AFB, Florida.
• The furthest airport from Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,542 miles (16,965 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• The strategic importance of Elmendorf AFB was graphically realized during the spring of 1980 when the 18th Tactical Fighter Squadron deployed eight of its F-4Es to Korea to participate in exercise Team Spirit.
• The Department of Defense proposed a major realignment of the base as part of the Base Realignment and Closure program announced on 13 May 2005.
• On 12 November 1940, the War Department formally designated what had been popularly referred to as Elmendorf Field as Fort Richardson.
• In addition to being known as "Elmendorf Air Force Base", another name for EDF is "JB Elmendorf-Richardson".

Facts about Akureyri Airport (AEY):

• Scheduled air travel to Akureyri started in 1928 when Flugfélag Íslands began flying on seaplanes to Reykjavík, landing on the fjord of Eyjafjörður near downtown Akureyri.
• In addition to being known as "Akureyri Airport", another name for AEY is "Akureyrarflugvöllur".
• The closest airport to Akureyri Airport (AEY) is Húsavík Airport (HZK), which is located 27 miles (44 kilometers) NE of AEY.
• Akureyri Airport (AEY) currently has only 1 runway.
• In 2008, Norlandair was founded, which serves destinations in north-eastern Iceland in cooperation with Air Iceland and various charter flights to Greenland.
• Because of Akureyri Airport's relatively low elevation of 6 feet, planes can take off or land at Akureyri 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 furthest airport from Akureyri Airport (AEY) is Ryan's Creek Aerodrome (SZS), which is located 11,121 miles (17,897 kilometers) away in Stewart Island, New Zealand.