Nonstop flight route between Fairbanks / Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States and Luton (near London), England, United Kingdom:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Ladd Army Airfield (FBK), Fairbanks / Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States and London Luton Airport (LTN), Luton (near London), England, United Kingdom would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,185 miles (or 6,736 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 Ladd Army Airfield and London Luton 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 Ladd Army Airfield and London Luton 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 Ladd Army Airfield (FBK):

• Weather and Testing Units
• Alaska's transportation infrastructure at the time was so limited and the problem of military supply so acute, it also made sense to concentrate the bases along existing supply lines near Anchorage and Fairbanks.
• In addition to being known as "Ladd Army Airfield", another name for FBK is "(Ladd Air Force Base)".
• Because of Ladd Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 454 feet, planes can take off or land at Ladd Army Airfield 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.
• When the Air Force was made a separate branch in 1947 the name was changed to Ladd Air Force Base.
• The closest airport to Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) is Fairbanks International Airport (FAI), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) WSW of FBK.
• Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) currently has only 1 runway.
• Reflecting the need to insure aircraft bound for the Soviet Union were prepared for the flight to Galena and Nome, prior to flying across the Bering Straits to Siberia, Ladd AAF the Alaska Air Depot of XI AF Service Command was activated on 8 July 1942.
• The furthest airport from Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,286 miles (16,554 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

Facts about London Luton Airport (LTN):

• The closest airport to London Luton Airport (LTN) is Hatfield Aerodrome (HTF), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) SSE of LTN.
• The original runways had been grass tracks 18/36 and 06/24, and then a concrete runway 08/26.
• Because of London Luton Airport's relatively low elevation of 526 feet, planes can take off or land at London Luton 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.
• London Luton Airport handled 9,697,944 passengers last year.
• In August 1997, to fund an £80 million extension of the airport, the council issued a 30-year concession contract to a public private partnership consortium, London Luton Airport Operations Limited, a partnership of Airport Group International and Barclays Private Equity.
• The northern side of the U-shaped apron is ringed by a continuous line of hangars and other buildings, emphasising the fact that Luton is a major maintenance base for several airlines including Thomson Airways, Monarch and EasyJet.
• The airport recently featured in the series "Supersize Grime" which focused on the cleaning of an Airbus A321 at the Monarch Aircraft Engineering Ltd hangar 127.
• The airport possesses a single runway, running roughly east to west, with a length of 2,160 m at an elevation of 526 ft.
• The furthest airport from London Luton Airport (LTN) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,851 miles (19,072 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• London Luton Airport (LTN) currently has only 1 runway.