Nonstop flight route between Fairbanks, Alaska, United States and Lake Charles, Louisiana, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eielson Air Force Base (EIL), Fairbanks, Alaska, United States and Chennault International Airport (CWF), Lake Charles, Louisiana, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,299 miles (or 5,310 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 Chennault 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 Eielson Air Force Base and Chennault 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 Eielson Air Force Base (EIL):

• Headquarters USAF General Order 2, dated 13 January 1948, redesignated Mile 26 as Eielson AFB.
• The Air Defense Command deployed interceptors to Eielson during the 1960s.
• 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.
• For the next 34 years, the 5010th served as host-unit at Eielson.
• In addition to being known as "Eielson Air Force Base", another name for EIL is "Eielson AFB".
• A month later, contractors and civilian crews from Ladd Field started laying out the new airfield.
• In July 1960, the Strategic Air Command stationed the 4157th Combat Support Group at Eielson.
• The host unit at Eielson is the 354th Fighter Wing assigned to the Pacific Air Forces Eleventh Air Force.
• 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.

Facts about Chennault International Airport (CWF):

• The Mallard Cove Golf Course, an 18-hole championship golf course, is located near the airport.
• The site was officially designated by NASA as an alternative landing site for the Space Shuttle.
• Because of Chennault International Airport's relatively low elevation of 17 feet, planes can take off or land at Chennault International 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 furthest airport from Chennault International Airport (CWF) is Cocos (Keeling) Island Airport (CCK), which is located 11,037 miles (17,763 kilometers) away in Cocos Islands, Australia.
• Chennault International Airport covers an area of 1,310 acres at an elevation of 17 feet above mean sea level.
• The closest airport to Chennault International Airport (CWF) is Lake Charles Regional Airport (LCH), which is located only 8 miles (12 kilometers) SW of CWF.
• Chennault International Airport (CWF) currently has only 1 runway.
• It was previously Chennault Air Force Base and before that, Lake Charles Air Force Base' and Lake Charles Army Air Field, and as such, was home to the now inactivated 44th Bombardment Wing in the 1950s and 1960s.