Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base (FLV), Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,275 miles (or 6,879 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 Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force 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 Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force 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):

• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
• 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.
• Fairford was chosen in 1969 as the British test centre for the Concorde aircraft, which continued until 1977.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of 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.
• 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.
• Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.

Facts about Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base (FLV):

• In addition to being known as "Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base", another name for FLV is "Sherman AAF".
• The furthest airport from Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base (FLV) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,739 miles (17,283 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• In 2002 the United States Disciplinary Barracks relocated from the middle of the fort to the northwest edge of the airport.
• Sherman airfield is also home to one of the last Army Flying Clubs in the United States.
• In 1946 Sherman passed from Third Air Force to the newly created Tactical Air Command, under which it remained until the end of 1948 when it was given to Tenth Air Force, a subordinate of Continental Air Command.
• From its beginning, the primary and almost exclusive function of Sherman Army Airfield at Fort Leavenworth was to provide flying facilities for the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth.
• The closest airport to Sherman Army AirfieldSherman Air Force Base (FLV) is Kansas City International Airport (MCI), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) ESE of FLV.