Nonstop flight route between Needles, California, United States and Istres, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Needles AirportNeedles Army Airfield (EED), Needles, California, United States and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE), Istres, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,827 miles (or 9,377 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 Needles AirportNeedles Army Airfield and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base, 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 Needles AirportNeedles Army Airfield and Istres-Le Tubé Air Base. 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 Needles AirportNeedles Army Airfield (EED):

• Needles Airport covers 796 acres at an elevation of 983 feet above mean sea level.
• Needles AirportNeedles Army Airfield (EED) has 2 runways.
• In the year ending February 17, 2006 the airport had 10,500 general aviation aircraft operations, an average of 28 per day.
• Because of Needles AirportNeedles Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 983 feet, planes can take off or land at Needles AirportNeedles Army Airfield 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 Needles AirportNeedles Army Airfield (EED) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,392 miles (18,334 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to Needles AirportNeedles Army Airfield (EED) is Lake Havasu City Airport (HII), which is located 20 miles (33 kilometers) SE of EED.

Facts about Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE):

• The airfield was designated by the Americans as Istres/Le Tubé Airfield or Advanced Landing Ground Y-17.
• The furthest airport from Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (meaning Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,364 miles (19,898 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of Istres-Le Tubé Air Base's relatively low elevation of 162 feet, planes can take off or land at Istres-Le Tubé Air Base 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 Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) is Marseille Provence Airport (MRS), which is located only 15 miles (24 kilometers) ESE of QIE.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base is a large multi-role tasked French Air Force base located near Istres, northwest of Marseille, France.
• Istres-Le Tubé Air Base (QIE) currently has only 1 runway.
• C135FR "GRV 093 Bretagne"
• Sometime after World War II, until May 1958 Base Aérienne 125 was host to the Royal Air Force Liaison Party, that serviced transient British and Commonwealth military aircraft staging to and from the United Kingdom.
• In addition to being known as "Istres-Le Tubé Air Base", another name for QIE is "Base aérienne 125 Istres (BA 125)Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-17".