Nonstop flight route between Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Catania, Sicily, Italy:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Catania–Fontanarossa Airport (CTA), Catania, Sicily, Italy would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,563 miles (or 8,953 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 Catania–Fontanarossa 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 Catania–Fontanarossa 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 installation hosts the headquarters for the United States Alaskan Command, 11th Air Force, U.S.
• 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.
• 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 closest airport to Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Merrill Field (MRI), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of EDF.
• In addition to being known as "Elmendorf Air Force Base", another name for EDF is "JB Elmendorf-Richardson".
• Following World War II, Elmendorf assumed an increasing role in the defense of North America as the uncertain wartime relations between the United States and the Soviet Union deteriorated into the Cold War.
• Construction on Elmendorf Field began on 8 June 1940, as a major and permanent military airfield near Anchorage.
• 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.

Facts about Catania–Fontanarossa Airport (CTA):

• The airport is conveniently located close to the A19 motorway, which links Catania with Palermo and central Sicily, while the European route E45 runs to Syracuse in the south.
• Catania–Fontanarossa Airport (CTA) currently has only 1 runway.
• Catania–Fontanarossa Airport handled 6,400,127 passengers last year.
• After 20 years of unexpected growth and high passengers levels, in 1981 it was once again necessary to restructure the airport to cope with demand.
• The closest airport to Catania–Fontanarossa Airport (CTA) is Naval Air Station Sigonella (NSY), which is located only 9 miles (14 kilometers) WSW of CTA.
• In addition to being known as "Catania–Fontanarossa Airport", other names for CTA include "Catania Vincenzo Bellini Airport" and "Aeroporto di Catania-Fontanarossa".
• Because of Catania–Fontanarossa Airport's relatively low elevation of 39 feet, planes can take off or land at Catania–Fontanarossa 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 Catania–Fontanarossa Airport (CTA) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,692 miles (18,816 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.