Nonstop flight route between Filton, Bristol, United Kingdom and Buka Island, Papua New Guinea:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bristol Filton Airport (FZO), Filton, Bristol, United Kingdom and Buka Island Airport (BUA), Buka Island, Papua New Guinea would travel a Great Circle distance of 8,995 miles (or 14,476 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 Bristol Filton Airport and Buka Island 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 Bristol Filton Airport and Buka Island 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 Bristol Filton Airport (FZO):

• In addition to being known as "Bristol Filton Airport", another name for FZO is "Filton Aerodrome".
• Before World War II, there were only grass runways at Filton.
• In 1958 the aero engine interests of the Bristol Aeroplane Company and Armstrong Siddeley were amalgamated to form Bristol Siddeley Engines.
• During the late 1940s and early 1950s, BAC branched out into the development and production of pre-fabricated buildings, plastics, helicopters, guided weapons, luxury cars, gas turbines and ramjet motors.
• Because of Bristol Filton Airport's relatively low elevation of 225 feet, planes can take off or land at Bristol Filton 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 Bristol Filton Airport (FZO) is Dunedin International Airport (DUD), which is located 11,930 miles (19,200 kilometers) away in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
• The company grew rapidly during WWI, building thousands of Bristol Fighters and other aircraft.
• Bristol Filton Airport (FZO) currently has only 1 runway.
• The manufacture of aeroplanes started in 1910, when Sir George White, the owner of Bristol Tramways, established the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company in the maintenance sheds of Bristol Tramways.
• During the early 1950s, British Overseas Airways Corporation flew their Lockheed Constellations and Boeing Stratocruisers into Filton to be serviced in the newly completed Brabazon Hangar, then the largest hangar in the world.
• The closest airport to Bristol Filton Airport (FZO) is Bristol Airport (BRS), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSW of FZO.
• On 26 November 2003, Concorde 216 made the final ever Concorde flight from Heathrow, passing over the Bay of Biscay before making a low pass over Bristol and finally returning to Filton where it is now maintained on a temporary apron, although has not been open to the public as a visitor attraction since 2010.

Facts about Buka Island Airport (BUA):

• It is located at the southern end of the island, near Buka Passage behind the town of Buka, and pre-war Chinatown.
• Today the airport is the primary air portal into Bougainville, and even 60 years after the war, wreckage from the military use of the airfield by the Japanese and Americans is easily found in the area.
• The closest airport to Buka Island Airport (BUA) is Nissan Island Airport (IIS), which is located 71 miles (114 kilometers) NNW of BUA.
• Because of Buka Island Airport's relatively low elevation of 11 feet, planes can take off or land at Buka Island 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 Buka Island Airport (BUA) is São Filipe Airport (SFL), which is located 11,781 miles (18,959 kilometers) away in Fogo, Cape Verde.
• On 26 July, an Imperial Japanese Navy special detachment was sent to inspect Buka Airfield, but considered it unacceptable as a prospect for a speedily constructed major airfield.
• There is one navigational aid, the Buka NDB situated on nearby Sohano Island.
• Buka Island Airport (BUA) currently has only 1 runway.