Nonstop flight route between Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Benin City, Nigeria:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Benin Airport (BNI), Benin City, Nigeria would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,584 miles (or 12,206 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 Benin 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 Benin 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):

• On 16 November 2010, a Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor took off for a training mission.
• The late 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s brought about a gradual, but significant decline in air defense forces in Alaska due to mission changes and the demands of the Vietnam War.
• The installation hosts the headquarters for the United States Alaskan Command, 11th Air Force, U.S.
• 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.
• On 22 September 1995, a Boeing E-3 Sentry Airborne early warning and control aircraft with 22 USAF personnel and two Canadian air crew members crashed after ingesting a flock of Canada Geese, killing all on board.
• In addition to being known as "Elmendorf Air Force Base", another name for EDF is "JB Elmendorf-Richardson".
• Air defense forces reached their zenith in 1957 with almost 200 fighter aircraft assigned to six fighter interceptor squadrons located at Elmendorf AFB and Ladd AFB.
• The closest airport to Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Merrill Field (MRI), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of EDF.

Facts about Benin Airport (BNI):

• Benin Airport (BNI) currently has only 1 runway.
• Because of Benin Airport's relatively low elevation of 258 feet, planes can take off or land at Benin 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 closest airport to Benin Airport (BNI) is Akure Airport (AKR), which is located 67 miles (109 kilometers) NNW of BNI.
• The furthest airport from Benin Airport (BNI) is Canton Island Airport (CIS), which is nearly antipodal to Benin Airport (meaning Benin Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Canton Island Airport), and is located 12,129 miles (19,520 kilometers) away in Canton Island, Kiribati.
• Benin Airport handled 308,741 passengers last year.