Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Marion, Illinois, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from FFD to MWA:
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- About this route
- FFD Airport Information
- MWA Airport Information
- Facts about FFD
- Facts about MWA
- 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 MWA
- List of Nearest Airports to MWA
- Map of Furthest Airports from MWA
- List of Furthest Airports from MWA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Williamson County Regional Airport (MWA), Marion, Illinois, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,127 miles (or 6,641 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 Williamson County 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 Williamson County 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: | MWA / KMWA |
| Airport Name: | Williamson County Regional Airport |
| Location: | Marion, Illinois, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 37°45'18"N by 89°0'39"W |
| Area Served: | Marion, Illinois |
| Operator/Owner: | Williamson County Airport Authority |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 472 feet (144 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 2 |
| View all routes: | Routes from MWA |
| More Information: | MWA Maps & Info |
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 the only TransOceanic Abort Landing site for NASA's Space Shuttle in the UK.
- 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.
- 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 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.
- 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.
Facts about Williamson County Regional Airport (MWA):
- On October 23, 2007, Allegiant Air announced new service to McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada.
- The furthest airport from Williamson County Regional Airport (MWA) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,065 miles (17,807 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Williamson County Regional Airport (MWA) has 2 runways.
- The closest airport to Williamson County Regional Airport (MWA) is Southern Illinois Airport (MDH), which is located only 13 miles (21 kilometers) W of MWA.
- Because of Williamson County Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 472 feet, planes can take off or land at Williamson County 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 airport covers 1,300 acres at an elevation of 472 feet.
