Nonstop flight route between Fairbanks, Alaska, United States and Celle, Germany:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eielson Air Force Base (EIL), Fairbanks, Alaska, United States and Celle Air Base (ZCN), Celle, Germany would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,244 miles (or 6,829 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 Celle 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 Eielson Air Force Base and Celle 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 Eielson Air Force Base (EIL):

• The 6th SW flew RC–135 strategic reconnaissance missions with an assigned squadron, and, with KC–135s deployed to Eielson from SAC, AFRES, and the ANG, conducted Alaska Tanker Task Force missions to support reconnaissance and numerous exercises for the Air Force and Navy.
• 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.
• Operational uses of Mile 26 were few.
• On 1 December 1947 Strategic Air Command B-29 Superfortress bombers arrived at 26-Mile Airfield with the deployment of the 97th Bombardment Wing, Very Heavy, from Smoky Hill AFB, Kansas.
• In addition to being known as "Eielson Air Force Base", another name for EIL is "Eielson AFB".
• 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.
• On 7 June 1943, the Western Defense Command ordered construction of a new airfield near present-day Fort Wainwright, then an Army airfield named after Major Arthur Ladd.
• For the next 34 years, the 5010th served as host-unit at Eielson.

Facts about Celle Air Base (ZCN):

• The Treaty of Versailles in 1919 prohibited the German Reich to have her own air force.
• Celle Air Base is located 2.7 miles southwest of the city centre of Celle and 18 miles northeast of the city centre of Hanover.
• Celle Air Base (ZCN) currently has only 1 runway.
• With the beginning of the Berlin Airlift in 1948 this, however, changed radically.
• The furthest airport from Celle Air Base (ZCN) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,761 miles (18,928 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Because of Celle Air Base's relatively low elevation of 129 feet, planes can take off or land at Celle 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 Celle Air Base (ZCN) is Hannover Airport (HAJ), which is located only 17 miles (27 kilometers) WSW of ZCN.
• In addition to being known as "Celle Air Base", other names for ZCN include "Heeresflugplatz Celle" and "(Advanced Landing Ground B-118)".
• Due to the tense situation during the building of the Berlin Wall a small unit of the National Guard of the United States was stationed at Celle Air Base in 1961 in case of a second Berlin Airlift.