Nonstop flight route between Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Grise Fiord, Nunavut, Canada:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between RAF Fairford (FFD), Fairford, England, United Kingdom and Grise Fiord Airport (YGZ), Grise Fiord, Nunavut, Canada would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,644 miles (or 4,255 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 Grise Fiord 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 Grise Fiord 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 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.
• 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.
• The closest airport to RAF Fairford (FFD) is RAF Brize Norton (BZZ), which is located only 10 miles (16 kilometers) ENE of FFD.
• Fairford was chosen in 1969 as the British test centre for the Concorde aircraft, which continued until 1977.
• Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force.

Facts about Grise Fiord Airport (YGZ):

• Because of Grise Fiord Airport's relatively low elevation of 135 feet, planes can take off or land at Grise Fiord 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 furthest airport from Grise Fiord Airport (YGZ) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,701 miles (15,612 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
• The closest airport to Grise Fiord Airport (YGZ) is Siorapaluk Heliport (SRK), which is located 209 miles (336 kilometers) ENE of YGZ.
• Grise Fiord Airport (YGZ) currently has only 1 runway.