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

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Chatham Seaplane Base (CYM), Chatham, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,441 miles (or 7,147 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 Chatham 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 Chatham 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 the only TransOceanic Abort Landing site for NASA's Space Shuttle in the UK.
• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
• 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.
• 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 Chatham Seaplane Base (CYM):

• Because of Chatham Seaplane Base's relatively low elevation of 0 feet, planes can take off or land at Chatham 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.
• The closest airport to Chatham Seaplane Base (CYM) is Angoon Seaplane Base (AGN), which is located only 13 miles (22 kilometers) E of CYM.
• Chatham Seaplane Base (CYM) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Chatham Seaplane Base (CYM) is Port Alfred Airport (AFD), which is located 10,576 miles (17,020 kilometers) away in Port Alfred, South Africa.