Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Albert Lea, Minnesota, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Albert Lea Municipal Airport (AEL), Albert Lea, Minnesota, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,009 miles (or 6,452 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 RAF Fairford and Albert Lea Municipal 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 RAF Fairford and Albert Lea Municipal 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 RAF Fairford (FFD):

• The furthest airport from RAF Fairford (FFD) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,898 miles (19,148 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• RAF Lyneham's position as the primary tactical transport base for the RAF was emphasised in February 1971 when Nos.
• On 12 May 2005, USAFE activated the 501st Combat Support Wing, with headquarters at RAF Alconbury, to provide support to its GSUs in the United Kingdom.
• RAF Fairford was the only TransOceanic Abort Landing site for NASA's Space Shuttle in the UK.
• Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.
• On 14 January 2004, the 420th Air Base Group was established at RAF Fairford to improve the control of its geographically separated units that had been aligned beneath the 100th Air Refueling Wing at RAF Mildenhall.
• The runway was completed in 1953, and served as a forward airbase for the first Convair B-36 Peacemaker aircraft from Carswell Air Force Base, Texas.

Facts about Albert Lea Municipal Airport (AEL):

• Albert Lea Municipal Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport located three nautical miles north of the central business district of the city of Albert Lea, in Freeborn County, Minnesota, United States.
• The closest airport to Albert Lea Municipal Airport (AEL) is Austin Municipal Airport (AUM), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) E of AEL.
• Albert Lea Municipal Airport (AEL) has 2 runways.
• Albert Lea Municipal Airport was recently granted over $3 million in federal economic stimulus funds to relocate the main runway.
• From 1990-2008 Albert Lea was the host site for the International Aerobatic Club Doug Yost Challenge Aerobatic Competition.
• The furthest airport from Albert Lea Municipal Airport (AEL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,773 miles (17,338 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.