Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Noorvik, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Robert (Bob) Curtis Memorial Airport (ORV), Noorvik, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,177 miles (or 6,723 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 Robert (Bob) Curtis Memorial 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 Robert (Bob) Curtis Memorial 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):

• 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.
• Fairford was chosen in 1969 as the British test centre for the Concorde aircraft, which continued until 1977.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986.
• RAF Fairford is also the home of the Royal International Air Tattoo, an annual air display.
• 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 Robert (Bob) Curtis Memorial Airport (ORV):

• Robert (Bob) Curtis Memorial Airport (ORV) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Robert (Bob) Curtis Memorial Airport (ORV) is Bob Baker Memorial Airport (IAN), which is located only 19 miles (31 kilometers) NE of ORV.
• Because of Robert (Bob) Curtis Memorial Airport's relatively low elevation of 55 feet, planes can take off or land at Robert (Bob) Curtis Memorial 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 addition to being known as "Robert (Bob) Curtis Memorial Airport", another name for ORV is "D76".
• The furthest airport from Robert (Bob) Curtis Memorial Airport (ORV) is Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Airport (TNM), which is located 10,251 miles (16,497 kilometers) away in Villa Las Estrellas, Antarctica.