Nonstop flight route between Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Phoenix, Arizona, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX), Phoenix, Arizona, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,546 miles (or 4,097 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 Phoenix Sky Harbor International 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 Phoenix Sky Harbor International 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 Elmendorf AFB is a site of one of the now decommissioned FLR-9 Wullenweber-class antennas, a node of the now obsolete High Frequency SIGINT direction finding system.
• The closest airport to Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF) is Merrill Field (MRI), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) SSW of EDF.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Elmendorf Air Force Base", another name for EDF is "JB Elmendorf-Richardson".

Facts about Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX):

• Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) has 3 runways.
• In the meantime Southwest Airlines arrived at Phoenix in January 1982 with thirteen daily flights to twelve cities.
• In 2012, the airport served 40,448,932 passengers, making it one of the top 10 busiest in the United States by passenger count.
• After airline deregulation in 1978 former Hughes Airwest executive Ed Beauvais formed a plan for a new airline based in Phoenix.
• The furthest airport from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,450 miles (18,427 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The 880,000 square-feet, $35 million Terminal 3, designed by DWL Architects + Planners, Inc., broke ground in January 1977 opened in October 1979 and has 17 gates, separated into two concourses by a central building outside of security.
• The closest airport to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) is Scottsdale Airport (SCF), which is located only 14 miles (23 kilometers) NNE of PHX.
• Phoenix has consistent winds, and Sky Harbor is one of the largest airports in the world to have all runways parallel.
• The airport's master plan was redesigned in 1959 to eliminate the cross runway to make room for new terminals.