Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Las Vegas, Nevada, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Nellis Air Force BaseLas Vegas Air Force Base (1948) Las Vegas Army Airfield (1941)[1] McCarren Field (c. 1935)[2] (LSV), Las Vegas, Nevada, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,149 miles (or 8,286 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 Nellis Air Force BaseLas Vegas Air Force Base (1948) Las Vegas Army Airfield (1941)[1] McCarren Field (c. 1935)[2], 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 Nellis Air Force BaseLas Vegas Air Force Base (1948) Las Vegas Army Airfield (1941)[1] McCarren Field (c. 1935)[2]. 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 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.
• In 1950, as a result of the beginning of the Cold War, the airfield was transferred to the U.S.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• On 15 September 2009, it was announced that the USAF will withdraw all their uniformed staff from the station by September 2010, after which it will be run on a "care and maintenance" basis.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.

Facts about Nellis Air Force BaseLas Vegas Air Force Base (1948) Las Vegas Army Airfield (1941)[1] McCarren Field (c. 1935)[2] (LSV):

• The FWC supervised Red Flag operational training and other continuing air exercises, such as Green Flag and Silver Flag Alpha.
• There were 2,873 households out of which 52.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.5% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.3% were non-families.
• Nellis AFB covers about 11,300 acres in the northeast corner of the Las Vegas Valley, an alluvial basin in the Basin and Range Province.
• The furthest airport from Nellis Air Force BaseLas Vegas Air Force Base (1948) Las Vegas Army Airfield (1941)[1] McCarren Field (c. 1935)[2] (LSV) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,293 miles (18,174 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to Nellis Air Force BaseLas Vegas Air Force Base (1948) Las Vegas Army Airfield (1941)[1] McCarren Field (c. 1935)[2] (LSV) is North Las Vegas Airport (VGT), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) WSW of LSV.
• In addition to being known as "Nellis Air Force BaseLas Vegas Air Force Base (1948) Las Vegas Army Airfield (1941)[1] McCarren Field (c. 1935)[2]", another name for LSV is "Nellis AFB (military installation)".
• The 1st B-17 Flying Fortresses arrived in 1942 and allowed training of 600 gunnery students and 215 co-pilots from LVAAF every five weeks at the height of WWII, and more than 45,000 B-17 gunners were trained The 82d Flying Training Wing for "Flexible Gunnery" was activated at the base as 1 of 10 AAF Flying Training Command wings on 23 August 1943:18 and by 1944, gunnery students fired from B-17, B-24 Liberator and B-40 Flying Fortress gunship aircraft.