Nonstop flight route between East London, South Africa and Norfolk, Virginia, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between East London Airport (ELS), East London, South Africa and Naval Station Norfolk (NGU), Norfolk, Virginia, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,251 miles (or 13,279 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 Naval Station Norfolk, 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 Naval Station Norfolk. 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):

• Passenger flights were undertaken by two de Havilland Moth planes on Saturday afternoons and all day on Sundays, weather permitting.
• In 1965 the airport was again moved, this time to its present site, 9 km west of the city centre.
• East London Airport (ELS) has 2 runways.
• 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 closest airport to East London Airport (ELS) is Port Alfred Airport (AFD), which is located 65 miles (105 kilometers) WSW of ELS.
• 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 Naval Station Norfolk (NGU):

• The closest airport to Naval Station Norfolk (NGU) is Norfolk International Airport (ORF), which is located only 7 miles (11 kilometers) ESE of NGU.
• Using the same theories of Eugene Ely's flight nearly 13 years earlier, another milestone was achieved.
• The land on which the naval station is located was originally the site of the 1907 Jamestown Exposition.
• The furthest airport from Naval Station Norfolk (NGU) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,762 miles (18,929 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In July 1940, the Federal government began dredging Willoughby Bay and the Naval Air Station seaplane operating area at Breezy Point, Virginia was constructed from reclaimed marshlands at the mouth of Mason Creek, Virginia.
• In addition to being known as "Naval Station Norfolk", another name for NGU is "Chambers Field".
• In this early phase of the war, the U-boats had the best of it.
• During the late 1930s, major construction took place at Naval Station Norfolk.
• Naval Station Norfolk (NGU) currently has only 1 runway.
• When the United States became involved in World War I, the size of the Navy's air component was rapidly expanded.
• NAS Norfolk started its roots training aviators at Naval Air Detachment, Curtiss Field, Newport News, on May 19, 1917.