Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Mogadishu, Somalia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Aden Adde International Airport (MGQ), Mogadishu, Somalia would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,373 miles (or 7,038 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 Aden Adde 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 Aden Adde 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 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.
• Operations staff and maintenance personnel were permanently assigned, but aircraft, aircrews and crew chiefs were temporarily assigned to the 11th Strategic Group for the European Tanker Task Force on rotation.
• 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 closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• On 12 May 2005, USAFE activated the 501st Combat Support Wing, with headquarters at RAF Alconbury, to provide support to its GSUs in the United Kingdom.
• 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.

Facts about Aden Adde International Airport (MGQ):

• During the post-independence period, Mogadishu International Airport offered flights to numerous global destinations.
• The furthest airport from Aden Adde International Airport (MGQ) is Atuona Airport (AUQ), which is located 11,824 miles (19,029 kilometers) away in Atuona, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.
• Aden Adde International Airport (MGQ) currently has only 1 runway.
• Among its first initiatives, worth an estimated $6 million, SKA invested in new airport equipment and expanded support services by hiring, training and equipping 200 local workers to meet international airport standards.
• On 8 June 2007, the Transitional Federal Government announced that the airport would be renamed in honor of the first President of Somalia, Aden Abdullah Osman Daar, who had died earlier in the day.
• In late 2010, SKA Air and Logistics, a Dubai-based aviation firm that specializes in conflict zones, was contracted by the Transitional Federal Government to manage operations over a period of ten years at the re-opened Aden Adde International Airport.
• Additionally, the IOM has helped firm up on airport security by training 84 civil aviation, immigration, finance and customs department officers on proper border management and immigration protocol.
• The closest airport to Aden Adde International Airport (MGQ) is Baidoa Airport (BIB), which is located 138 miles (223 kilometers) WNW of MGQ.