Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Amook Bay, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Amook Bay Seaplane Base (AOS), Amook Bay, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,731 miles (or 7,613 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 Amook Bay Seaplane Base, 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 Amook Bay Seaplane Base. 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):

• RAF Fairford was constructed in 1944 to serve as an airfield for British and American troop carriers and gliders for the D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II.
• Operations staff and maintenance personnel were permanently assigned, but aircraft, aircrews and crew chiefs were temporarily assigned to the 11th Strategic Group for the European Tanker Task Force on rotation.
• Due to the deteriorating airfield facilities and its unique NATO heavy bomber mission, RAF Fairford underwent a $100 million upgrade of its runway and fuel systems in the largest NATO funded airfield construction project within a NATO country since the end of the Cold War.
• In 1950, as a result of the beginning of the Cold War, the airfield was transferred to the U.S.
• RAF Fairford was the only TransOceanic Abort Landing site for NASA's Space Shuttle in the UK.
• The 422nd ABG at RAF Croughton and the 420th Air Base Squadron are responsible for the day-to-day operations of RAF Fairford, ensuring that it has adequate resources.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of 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.

Facts about Amook Bay Seaplane Base (AOS):

• Amook Bay Seaplane Base has one seaplane landing area designated N/S with a water surface measuring 8,000 by 700 feet.
• Because of Amook Bay Seaplane Base's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Amook Bay Seaplane Base 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.
• Amook Bay Seaplane Base (AOS) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Amook Bay Seaplane Base (AOS) is Zachar Bay Seaplane Base (KZB), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NNE of AOS.
• In addition to being known as "Amook Bay Seaplane Base", another name for AOS is "AK81".
• The furthest airport from Amook Bay Seaplane Base (AOS) is Port Elizabeth International Airport (PLZ), which is located 10,814 miles (17,403 kilometers) away in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.