Nonstop flight route between Eagle, Colorado (near Vail), United States and St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE), Eagle, Colorado (near Vail), United States and MoD St Athan (DGX), St Athan, Wales, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,647 miles (or 7,478 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 Eagle County Regional Airport and MoD St Athan, 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 Eagle County Regional Airport and MoD St Athan. 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 Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE):

• Eagle County Regional Airport, sometimes referred to as Vail/Eagle Airport or the Eagle Vail Airport, is a public airport located four miles west of Eagle, Colorado, United States.
• Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE) currently has only 1 runway.
• Eagle County Regional Airport handled 218,105 passengers last year.
• The closest airport to Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE) is Aspen–Pitkin County Airport (ASE), which is located 29 miles (47 kilometers) S of EGE.
• During the ski season, airlines mostly operate the Boeing 757 which are able to make non-stop flights to most U.S.
• While there is no standard published ILS approach at the airport, there is a special ILS approach, mostly used by the airlines, which requires permission and training from the FSDO.
• The furthest airport from Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,946 miles (17,617 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The airport is largely seasonal, with the greatest number of scheduled flights operating during the winter months.
• Because of Eagle County Regional Airport's high elevation of 6,547 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at EGE. Combined with a high temperature, this could make EGE a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.

Facts about MoD St Athan (DGX):

• MoD St Athan (DGX) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from MoD St Athan (DGX) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,960 miles (19,248 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• During the 1960s, a driving school was established.
• Just before 1100 GMT on 11 February 2009, two Grob Tutor aircraft flying out of St Athan were involved in a mid-air collision in which two Air Training Corps cadets and their instructors, both RAF pilots, died.
• RAF St Athan has been used to house a number of army units throughout its life and, in 2003, the 1st Battalion, Welsh Guards moved from Aldershot to St Athan - the first time they have been based in Wales since they were formed in 1915.
• The closest airport to MoD St Athan (DGX) is Cardiff Airport (CWL), which is located only 4 miles (6 kilometers) E of DGX.
• The only squadrons to operate out of St Athan on a regular basis are the University of Wales Air Squadron, flying Grob Tutors and No 634 Volunteer Gliding Squadron using Vigilant T.1s.
• Because of MoD St Athan's relatively low elevation of 163 feet, planes can take off or land at MoD St Athan 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 MOD later decided that DARA's 'Fast Jets' and 'Engines' businesses would close by April 2007, although the 'Large Aircraft' business would continue and, on 14 April 2005, the Project Red Dragon super-hangar opened and DARA moved its VC10 operations from its existing 'Twin Peaks' hangar into the new facility.