Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Gadsden, Alabama, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from FFD to GAD:
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- About this route
- FFD Airport Information
- GAD Airport Information
- Facts about FFD
- Facts about GAD
- Map of Nearest Airports to FFD
- List of Nearest Airports to FFD
- Map of Furthest Airports from FFD
- List of Furthest Airports from FFD
- Map of Nearest Airports to GAD
- List of Nearest Airports to GAD
- Map of Furthest Airports from GAD
- List of Furthest Airports from GAD
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Northeast Alabama Regional Airport (GAD), Gadsden, Alabama, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,193 miles (or 6,749 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 Northeast Alabama Regional 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 Northeast Alabama Regional Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | FFD / EGVA |
Airport Name: | RAF Fairford |
Location: | Fairford, England, United Kingdom |
GPS Coordinates: | 51°40'55"N by 1°47'24"W |
Operator/Owner: | Ministry of Defence |
View all routes: | Routes from FFD |
More Information: | FFD Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GAD / KGAD |
Airport Name: | Northeast Alabama Regional Airport |
Location: | Gadsden, Alabama, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 33°58'22"N by 86°5'21"W |
Area Served: | Gadsden, Alabama |
Operator/Owner: | Gadsden Airport Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 569 feet (173 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from GAD |
More Information: | GAD Maps & Info |
Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):
- 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.
- 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.
- Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.
- 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 Northeast Alabama Regional Airport (GAD):
- Northeast Alabama Regional Airport (GAD) has 2 runways.
- The closest airport to Northeast Alabama Regional Airport (GAD) is Talladega Municipal Airport (ASN), which is located 28 miles (45 kilometers) S of GAD.
- Because of Northeast Alabama Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 569 feet, planes can take off or land at Northeast Alabama Regional Airport 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 furthest airport from Northeast Alabama Regional Airport (GAD) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,225 miles (18,064 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.