Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Lansing, Michigan, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Capital Region International Airport (LAN), Lansing, Michigan, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,721 miles (or 5,988 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 Capital Region International 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 Capital Region International 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 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 Capital Region International Airport (LAN):

• Because of Capital Region International Airport's relatively low elevation of 861 feet, planes can take off or land at Capital Region International 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.
• In July 2011 Eastern Michigan University announced that its flight-training program would begin operating out of the Lansing airport in September, coinciding with the elimination of Lansing Community College's aviation flight program.
• Capital Region International Airport (LAN) has 3 runways.
• The furthest airport from Capital Region International Airport (LAN) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,212 miles (18,044 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Capital Region International Airport (LAN) is Jackson County Airport (JXN), which is located 36 miles (59 kilometers) S of LAN.
• President Bill Clinton landed at the airport aboard Air Force One on July 22, 1999, to hold a forum on Medicare at Lansing Community College.
• In March 2009 the Federal Aviation Administration announced the planned consolidation of radar control for Lansing's airport, as well as that of airports in Grand Rapids and Muskegon, to nearby Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport in 2013.
• In January 2008 Capital Region International Airport was designated as an International Port of Entry into the United States, with Customs and Border Protection officers on duty to process international passengers and air freight.
• In the early 1960s Lansing Community College leased the Francis Aviation Complex at Capital City Airport.