Nonstop flight route between Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Nuuk, Greenland:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Nuuk Airport (GOH), Nuuk, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,803 miles (or 4,511 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 Nuuk 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 Nuuk 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):

• In addition to being known as "Elmendorf Air Force Base", another name for EDF is "JB Elmendorf-Richardson".
• The first Air Force unit to be assigned to Alaska, the 18th Pursuit Squadron, arrived in February 1941.
• That importance was further recognized when the F-15E Strike Eagle equipped 90th Tactical Fighter Squadron was reassigned to Elmendorf Air Force Base from Clark Air Base in the Philippines in May 1991.
• 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 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 closest airport to Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Merrill Field (MRI), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of EDF.
• 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 Nuuk Airport (GOH):

• The airport is located 2 NM northeast of Nuuk Centrum.
• Another option mentioned is to have Keflavik, Iceland as the international hub, close Kangerlussuaq, and expand Nuuk Airport runway slightly, so small jet planes can use it.
• In addition to being known as "Nuuk Airport", other names for GOH include "Mittarfik Nuuk" and "Nuuk Lufthavn".
• Nuuk Airport handled 69,324 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Nuuk Airport (GOH) is Maniitsoq Airport (JSU), which is located 92 miles (148 kilometers) NNW of GOH.
• Nuuk Airport (GOH) currently has only 1 runway.
• The de Havilland Canada Dash 8 turboprops, acquired in Spring 2010, are the newest planes in the Air Greenland fleet, and are based at the airport.
• Because of Nuuk Airport's relatively low elevation of 283 feet, planes can take off or land at Nuuk 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 Nuuk Airport (GOH) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 10,779 miles (17,347 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
• The tragedy was one of the factors leading to the decision to invest in a helicopter fleet.