Nonstop flight route between Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Santiago, Chile:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Elmendorf Air Force Base (EDF), Anchorage, Alaska, United States and Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport (SCL), Santiago, Chile would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,874 miles (or 12,671 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 Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez 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 Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez 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):

• 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 adjacent facilities were officially combined by the 2005 Base Closure and Realignment Commission.
• The uncertain world situation in late 1940s and early 1950s caused a major buildup of air defense forces in Alaska.
• 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 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 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".
• 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 installation hosts the headquarters for the United States Alaskan Command, 11th Air Force, U.S.
• 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 first Air Force unit to be assigned to Alaska, the 18th Pursuit Squadron, arrived in February 1941.

Facts about Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport (SCL):

• Construction of the original terminal building, the eastern runway, control tower, east apron and cargo facilities commenced in 1961.
• Santiago Airport has 21 well-known restaurants, coffee shops, and bars, located in the public area and in the national and international departing lounges.
• In addition to being known as "Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport", other names for SCL include "Pudahuel Airport" and "Santiago International Airport".
• Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport (SCL) has 2 runways.
• The furthest airport from Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport (SCL) is Ankang Wulipu Airport (AKA), which is nearly antipodal to Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport (meaning Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Ankang Wulipu Airport), and is located 12,387 miles (19,934 kilometers) away in Ankang, Shaanxi, China.
• In 2008, the airport terminal reached its maximum design capacity of 9.5 million annual passengers, 2 years earlier than forecast.
• The closest airport to Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport (SCL) is Viña del Mar Airport (KNA), which is located 50 miles (81 kilometers) NW of SCL.