Nonstop flight route between East London, South Africa and Tokyo, Honshū, Japan:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between East London Airport (ELS), East London, South Africa and Tokyo International Airport (HND), Tokyo, Honshū, Japan would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,629 miles (or 13,887 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 Tokyo 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 Tokyo 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 East London Airport (ELS):

• East London Airport (ELS) has 2 runways.
• East London Airport resides at an elevation of 435 feet above mean sea level.
• Passenger flights were undertaken by two de Havilland Moth planes on Saturday afternoons and all day on Sundays, weather permitting.
• 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.
• 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.
• In 1965 the airport was again moved, this time to its present site, 9 km west of the city centre.
• In 1944 a new airport was built at Collondale, about 2 km west of the present terminal building.
• 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.

Facts about Tokyo International Airport (HND):

• Tokyo International Airport (HND) has 4 runways.
• The closest airport to Tokyo International Airport (HND) is Narita International Airport (NRT), which is located 37 miles (59 kilometers) ENE of HND.
• Because of Tokyo International Airport's relatively low elevation of 21 feet, planes can take off or land at Tokyo 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 Tokyo International Airport (HND) is Diomício Freitas/Forquilhinha Airport (CCM), which is located 11,722 miles (18,864 kilometers) away in Criciúma, Santa Catarina, Brazil.
• The Transport Ministry released an expansion plan for Haneda in 1983 under which it would be expanded onto new landfill in Tokyo Bay with the aim of increasing capacity, reducing noise and making use of the large amount of garbage generated by Tokyo.
• Haneda Airport has three terminals.
• Haneda Air Force Base received its first international passenger flights in 1947 when Northwest Orient Airlines began DC-4 flights to the United States, China, South Korea, and the Philippines.
• Haneda Airport's new international terminal has received numerous complaints from passengers using it during night hours.
• Haneda was the primary international airport serving Tokyo until 1978.
• In addition to being known as "Tokyo International Airport", other names for HND include "東京国際空港" and "Tōkyō Kokusai Kūkō".