Nonstop flight route between Emmen, Lucerne, Switzerland and Big Spring, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Emmen Swiss Air Base (EML), Emmen, Lucerne, Switzerland and Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS), Big Spring, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,441 miles (or 8,756 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 Emmen Swiss Air Base and Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield, 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 Emmen Swiss Air Base and Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield. 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 Emmen Swiss Air Base (EML):

• The furthest airport from Emmen Swiss Air Base (EML) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Emmen Swiss Air Base (meaning Emmen Swiss Air Base is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,113 miles (19,495 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to Emmen Swiss Air Base (EML) is Zurich Airport (ZRH), which is located 28 miles (45 kilometers) NNE of EML.
• In addition to being known as "Emmen Swiss Air Base", another name for EML is "Flugplatzkommando Emmen".

Facts about Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS):

• The closest airport to Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Midland Airpark (MDD), which is located 36 miles (58 kilometers) WSW of BGS.
• Webb AFB was turned over to the General Services Agency for disposal on 1 January 1978 and the property later turned over to the Big Spring Industrial Park.
• The facility was brought back into service as a primary training installation because of the Korean War and the need for additional pilots.
• Construction of the Army Air Forces Bombardier School began on 15 May 1942, and the airfield received its first class of cadets on 16 September 1942.
• In August 1972, ATC established a pilot instructor training course for Vietnamese Air Force instructors at Webb AFB, Texas.
• Perhaps the most dominant feature on the ATC landscape in 1974 was the serious fuel shortage the command had to contend with for much of the year.
• The furthest airport from Webb Air Force Base Big Spring Army Airfield (BGS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,166 miles (17,969 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The base was declared surplus and was turned over to the War Assets Administration after being closed.