Nonstop flight route between East London, South Africa and Asmara, Eritrea:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from ELS to ASM:
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- About this route
- ELS Airport Information
- ASM Airport Information
- Facts about ELS
- Facts about ASM
- Map of Nearest Airports to ELS
- List of Nearest Airports to ELS
- Map of Furthest Airports from ELS
- List of Furthest Airports from ELS
- Map of Nearest Airports to ASM
- List of Nearest Airports to ASM
- Map of Furthest Airports from ASM
- List of Furthest Airports from ASM
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between East London Airport (ELS), East London, South Africa and Asmara International Airport (ASM), Asmara, Eritrea would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,418 miles (or 5,501 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 East London Airport and Asmara 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 East London Airport and Asmara International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | ELS / FAEL |
Airport Name: | East London Airport |
Location: | East London, South Africa |
GPS Coordinates: | 33°2'5"S by 27°49'17"E |
Area Served: | East London, Eastern Cape, South Africa |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 436 feet (133 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from ELS |
More Information: | ELS Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | ASM / HHAS |
Airport Name: | Asmara International Airport |
Location: | Asmara, Eritrea |
GPS Coordinates: | 15°17'30"N by 38°54'38"E |
Area Served: | Asmara |
Airport Type: | Military/Public |
Elevation: | 7661 feet (2,335 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from ASM |
More Information: | ASM Maps & Info |
Facts about East London Airport (ELS):
- East London Airport (ELS) has 2 runways.
- The closest airport to East London Airport (ELS) is Port Alfred Airport (AFD), which is located 65 miles (105 kilometers) WSW of ELS.
- The furthest airport from East London Airport (ELS) is Kalaupapa Airport (LUP), which is located 11,569 miles (18,618 kilometers) away in Kalaupapa, Hawaii, United States.
- The airport had an inauspicious beginning in 1927, when Lieut Colonel Alistair Miller asked the East London town council to help establish a municipal aerodrome at Woodbrook, west of the city.
- In 1965 the airport was again moved, this time to its present site, 9 km west of the city centre.
- Because of East London Airport's relatively low elevation of 436 feet, planes can take off or land at East London 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.
Facts about Asmara International Airport (ASM):
- The closest airport to Asmara International Airport (ASM) is Massawa International Airport (MSW), which is located 41 miles (66 kilometers) NE of ASM.
- Because of Asmara International Airport's high elevation of 7,661 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at ASM. Combined with a high temperature, this could make ASM a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- The furthest airport from Asmara International Airport (ASM) is Fangatau Airport (FGU), which is nearly antipodal to Asmara International Airport (meaning Asmara International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Fangatau Airport), and is located 12,398 miles (19,952 kilometers) away in Fangatau, French Polynesia.
- During World War II, the airport was nearly destroyed by the British.
- Asmara International Airport (ASM) has 2 runways.
- In 2004, the airport served 136,526 passengers.
- Asmara International Airport has capacity restrictions due to its small terminal, short runway and 1.5-mile altitude.