Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,477 miles (or 5,595 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 Philadelphia 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 Philadelphia 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):

• Royal Air Force Fairford or more simply RAF Fairford is a Royal Air Force station in Gloucestershire, England which is currently a standby airfield and therefore not in everyday use.
• 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 closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.

Facts about Philadelphia International Airport (PHL):

• US Airways became the dominant carrier at PHL during the 1980s and 1990s and shifted most of its hub operations from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia in 2003.
• Because of Philadelphia International Airport's relatively low elevation of 36 feet, planes can take off or land at Philadelphia 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.
• Philadelphia International Airport is important to Philadelphia, its metropolitan region and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
• The closest airport to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) is Philadelphia Seaplane BaseChandler Field (PSQ), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) WSW of PHL.
• In 2004 Southwest Airlines announced it would begin flights from PHL, challenging US Airways in some of its important East Coast and Midwest markets.
• Beginning in 1940 the Coatesville-based Rising Sun School of Aeronautics performed primary flight training at the airport under contract to the Air Corps.
• Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) has 4 runways.
• The furthest airport from Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,734 miles (18,884 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• SEPTA operates regional rail service between the airport and Center City Philadelphia via the Airport Line with stops at University City, Amtrak's 30th Street, Suburban, and Market East Stations.