Nonstop flight route between Fürstenfeldbruck, Bavaria, Germany and Fairbanks / Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base (FEL), Fürstenfeldbruck, Bavaria, Germany and Ladd Army Airfield (FBK), Fairbanks / Fort Wainwright, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,544 miles (or 7,313 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 Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base and Ladd 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 Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base and Ladd 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 Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base (FEL):

• Allied reprisal bombing began to desolate many German cities in 1944 and in October the Luftwaffe leaders rushed work to extend the Air Base's runways long enough for fighter aircraft takeoffs.
• In addition to being known as "Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base", another name for FEL is "Flugplatz FürstenfeldbruckAdvanced Landing Ground R-72".
• Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base is a German Air Force airfield near the town of Fürstenfeldbruck in Bavaria, near Munich, Germany.
• The closest airport to Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base (FEL) is Augsburg Airport (AGB), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) NW of FEL.
• On 20 January 1950, the 36th FW was redesignated as a Fighter-Bomber Wing when 89 Republic F-84E "Thunderjets" arrived.
• The furthest airport from Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base (FEL) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,958 miles (19,244 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base (FEL) currently has only 1 runway.
• The Replacement Depot functioned until August 1948, when USAFE decided to use Fürstenfeldbruck as an operational jet base.

Facts about Ladd Army Airfield (FBK):

• Testing at Ladd Field began again in 1942, but by 1943 aircraft cold-weather testing had become a second priority, as Ladd became the hub for fighters and bombers destined for the "Forgotten 1,000 Mile War" in the Aleutians against the Japanese or on their way to Soviet forces as part of the Lend-Lease program.
• 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 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.
• Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Ladd Army Airfield (FBK) is Fairbanks International Airport (FAI), which is located only 7 miles (12 kilometers) WSW of FBK.
• 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)".