Nonstop flight route between Fort Knox, Kentucky, United States and Melilla, (Spanish exclave in Morocco):

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Godman Army Airfield (FTK), Fort Knox, Kentucky, United States and Melilla Airport (MLN), Melilla, (Spanish exclave in Morocco) would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,445 miles (or 7,153 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 Melilla 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 Melilla 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):

• The Thomas Mantell incident began at 1:20pm on 7 January 1948, when the control tower operators at Godman Army Airfield, Kentucky sighted an unidentified airborne object in the sky close to the base.
• Godman Army Airfield (FTK) has 4 runways.
• In 1946, Godman was reassigned to the Tenth Air Force as part of the Air Force Reserve.
• 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.
• 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.
• The official Air Technical Information Command report on the crash stated that they were of the opinion that Captain Mantell lost consciousness due to oxygen starvation.
• The closest airport to Godman Army Airfield (FTK) is Addington Field (EKX), which is located only 15 miles (25 kilometers) S of FTK.
• The next message came from one of the three remaining pilots, who said he was losing his bearings and was becoming fearful of becoming lost.

Facts about Melilla Airport (MLN):

• Following the conflict between Spain and Morocco, a new military airfield was built near Cabrerizas Altas.
• Because of Melilla Airport's relatively low elevation of 156 feet, planes can take off or land at Melilla 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.
• In 1969, the current airport was opened within Melilla's borders and was strictly a civilian facility.
• In addition to being known as "Melilla Airport", another name for MLN is "Aeropuerto de Melilla".
• The furthest airport from Melilla Airport (MLN) is Great Barrier Aerodrome (GBZ), which is nearly antipodal to Melilla Airport (meaning Melilla Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Great Barrier Aerodrome), and is located 12,326 miles (19,837 kilometers) away in Great Barrier Island, New Zealand.
• Melilla Airport (MLN) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Melilla Airport (MLN) is Cherif Al Idrissi Airport (AHU), which is located 50 miles (81 kilometers) W of MLN.