Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Alpine, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Alpine-Casparis Municipal Airport (ALE), Alpine, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,068 miles (or 8,156 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 Alpine-Casparis 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 Alpine-Casparis 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 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.
• 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.
• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
• RAF Fairford is also the home of the Royal International Air Tattoo, an annual air display.
• 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.
• Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
• In the early years of the Cold War the British and American governments reached an agreement under which elements of the USAF Strategic Air Command would be based in the UK.

Facts about Alpine-Casparis Municipal Airport (ALE):

• Alpine-Casparis Municipal Airport (ALE) has 2 runways.
• In addition to being known as "Alpine-Casparis Municipal Airport", other names for ALE include "none" and "E38".
• The closest airport to Alpine-Casparis Municipal Airport (ALE) is Marfa Municipal Airport (MRF), which is located only 20 miles (32 kilometers) W of ALE.
• Alpine-Casparis Municipal Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located two miles northwest of the central business district of Alpine, a city in Brewster County, Texas, United States.
• Because of Alpine-Casparis Municipal Airport's high elevation of 4,515 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at ALE. Combined with a high temperature, this could make ALE a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• The furthest airport from Alpine-Casparis Municipal Airport (ALE) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,345 miles (18,257 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.