Nonstop flight route between Fort Knox, Kentucky, United States and Melbourne, Victoria, Australia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Godman Army Airfield (FTK), Fort Knox, Kentucky, United States and Essendon Airport (MEB), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 9,696 miles (or 15,604 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 Godman Army Airfield and Essendon 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 Godman Army Airfield and Essendon 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 Godman Army Airfield (FTK):

• In 1946, Godman was reassigned to the Tenth Air Force as part of the Air Force Reserve.
• The closest airport to Godman Army Airfield (FTK) is Addington Field (EKX), which is located only 15 miles (25 kilometers) S of FTK.
• Godman Army Airfield (FTK) has 4 runways.
• The furthest airport from Godman Army Airfield (FTK) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,229 miles (18,071 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• At the time a flight of four P-51 fighters was on a routine training flight under the supervision of Flight Commander Captain Thomas Mantell.
• Because of Godman Army Airfield's relatively low elevation of 756 feet, planes can take off or land at Godman Army Airfield 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.
• At 15,000 feet Mantell contacted the control tower and stated that he had the object in sight and was climbing to investigate.

Facts about Essendon Airport (MEB):

• Essendon Airport is located at Essendon, in Melbourne's northern suburbs, Victoria, Australia.
• In addition to being known as "Essendon Airport", another name for MEB is "Melbourne/Essendon".
• In 2007, the airport was re-designed under a new master plan, as part of the Essendon Fields development.
• The major passenger airlines using Essendon in the postwar years until scheduled air services were transferred to Tullamarine were Ansett Airlines and Trans Australia Airlines.
• Because of Essendon Airport's relatively low elevation of 282 feet, planes can take off or land at Essendon 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 Essendon Airport (MEB) is Flores Airport (FLW), which is nearly antipodal to Essendon Airport (meaning Essendon Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Flores Airport), and is located 12,192 miles (19,620 kilometers) away in Flores Island, Azores, Portugal.
• Essendon Airport (MEB) has 2 runways.
• The 1920s period saw the great pioneering aviation flights of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith who visited the airport on several occasions.
• The closest airport to Essendon Airport (MEB) is Melbourne Airport (MEL), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) NW of MEB.
• In November 2007 Essendon Airport released its latest master plan.
• Essendon became Australia's second, and Melbourne's first international airport in February 1950.