Nonstop flight route between Fairbanks, Alaska, United States and Alta, Norway:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eielson Air Force Base (EIL), Fairbanks, Alaska, United States and Alta Airport (ALF), Alta, Norway would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,123 miles (or 5,025 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 Eielson Air Force Base and Alta 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 Eielson Air Force Base and Alta 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 Eielson Air Force Base (EIL):

• Eielson is home to the 354th Fighter Wing which is part of the Eleventh Air Force of Pacific Air Forces.
• The 6th SW remained at Eielson AFB until 1992.
• Operational uses of Mile 26 were few.
• The furthest airport from Eielson Air Force Base (EIL) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,295 miles (16,568 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
• In addition to being known as "Eielson Air Force Base", another name for EIL is "Eielson AFB".
• The Air Defense Command deployed interceptors to Eielson during the 1960s.
• The closest airport to Eielson Air Force Base (EIL) is Ladd Army Airfield (FBK), which is located only 19 miles (31 kilometers) NW of EIL.
• Today the 1st Brigade 25th Infantry Division and the 4th Brigade 25th Infantry Division can be found training there.
• The 375th Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, from the 308th Bombardment Group at Tinker AFB Oklahoma, arrived at Eielson on 5 March 1949.
• Until 2007, Eielson was a front line base, deploying fighter and bomber units around the world as well as providing for the defense of Alaska.

Facts about Alta Airport (ALF):

• The closest airport to Alta Airport (ALF) is Lakselv Airport, Banak (LKL), which is located 38 miles (62 kilometers) E of ALF.
• The furthest airport from Alta Airport (ALF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,502 miles (16,901 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Alta Airport handled 353,051 passengers last year.
• Avinor decided in February 2007 to build a new passenger terminal and tower for NOK 300 million.
• In addition to being known as "Alta Airport", another name for ALF is "Alta lufthavn".
• Services were at first operated by Scandinavian Airlines System.
• Because of Alta Airport's relatively low elevation of 10 feet, planes can take off or land at Alta 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 airport is served by Norwegian Air Shuttle and Scandinavian Airlines with Boeing 737 aircraft on flights to Tromsø and Oslo.
• A proposal by a consultant company, ordered by the Ministry of Transport and Communications in 2011, suggested that starting in 2013 the subsidized routes in Finnmark should follow a coastal route, leaving those to Kirkenes and the county capital of Vadsø as the only subsidized routes remaining at Alta.
• Alta Airport (ALF) currently has only 1 runway.