Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and San Luis Potosí, San Luis Potosí, México:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Ponciano Arriaga International Airport (SLP), San Luis Potosí, San Luis Potosí, México would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,397 miles (or 8,686 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 Ponciano Arriaga 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 Ponciano Arriaga 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):

• 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.
• 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.
• Fairford was chosen in 1969 as the British test centre for the Concorde aircraft, which continued until 1977.
• RAF Fairford was the only TransOceanic Abort Landing site for NASA's Space Shuttle in the UK.
• 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.

Facts about Ponciano Arriaga International Airport (SLP):

• The furthest airport from Ponciano Arriaga International Airport (SLP) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,410 miles (18,362 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The closest airport to Ponciano Arriaga International Airport (SLP) is Guanajuato International Airport (BJX), which is located 94 miles (151 kilometers) SSW of SLP.
• Because of Ponciano Arriaga International Airport's high elevation of 6,035 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at SLP. Combined with a high temperature, this could make SLP a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
• Ponciano Arriaga International Airport (SLP) has 2 runways.