Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Milikapiti, Melville Island, Northern Territory, Australia:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from FFD to SNB:
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- About this route
- FFD Airport Information
- SNB Airport Information
- Facts about FFD
- Facts about SNB
- 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 SNB
- List of Nearest Airports to SNB
- Map of Furthest Airports from SNB
- List of Furthest Airports from SNB
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Snake Bay Airport (SNB), Milikapiti, Melville Island, Northern Territory, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,598 miles (or 13,837 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 Snake Bay 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 Snake Bay 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: | SNB / YSNB |
Airport Name: | Snake Bay Airport |
Location: | Milikapiti, Melville Island, Northern Territory, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 11°25'22"S by 130°39'12"E |
Area Served: | Melville Island, Australia |
Operator/Owner: | Tiwi Island Shire Council |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 173 feet (53 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SNB |
More Information: | SNB Maps & Info |
Facts about RAF Fairford (FFD):
- In 1950, as a result of the beginning of the Cold War, the airfield was transferred to the U.S.
- Due to the deteriorating airfield facilities and its unique NATO heavy bomber mission, RAF Fairford underwent a $100 million upgrade of its runway and fuel systems in the largest NATO funded airfield construction project within a NATO country since the end of the Cold War.
- 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.
- RAF Lyneham's position as the primary tactical transport base for the RAF was emphasised in February 1971 when Nos.
- RAF Fairford was the only TransOceanic Abort Landing site for NASA's Space Shuttle in the UK.
- 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 Snake Bay Airport (SNB):
- Because of Snake Bay Airport's relatively low elevation of 173 feet, planes can take off or land at Snake Bay 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.
- Snake Bay Airport (SNB) currently has only 1 runway.
- The airfield was never fully utilized as the proposed amphibious operations were canceled and replaced with the New Guinea campaign.
- The furthest airport from Snake Bay Airport (SNB) is Cayenne – Félix Eboué Airport (CAY), which is located 11,936 miles (19,209 kilometers) away in Cayenne, French Guiana.
- The closest airport to Snake Bay Airport (SNB) is Garden Point Airport (GPN), which is located only 16 miles (25 kilometers) W of SNB.
- The Royal Australian Air Force built the airfield as a forward fighter aerodrome, during World War II as part of the proposed strategic amphibious operations by Allied forces against the Tanimbar Islands and Kai Islands.
- Construction was started on 7 July 1944, by No.