Nonstop flight route between Filton, Bristol, United Kingdom and Tampa, Florida, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Bristol Filton Airport (FZO), Filton, Bristol, United Kingdom and MacDill Air Force Base (MCF), Tampa, Florida, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,318 miles (or 6,948 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 MacDill Air Force Base, 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 MacDill Air Force Base. 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 1954 BAC opened a technical college for apprentices and trainees at the bottom of Filton Hill.
• Bristol Filton Airport (FZO) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to Bristol Filton Airport (FZO) is Bristol Airport (BRS), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSW of FZO.
• The company grew rapidly during WWI, building thousands of Bristol Fighters and other aircraft.
• Aircraft produced during WWII included the Blenheim, Beaufort, Beaufighter and Brigand.
• 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.
• 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.
• In addition to being known as "Bristol Filton Airport", another name for FZO is "Filton Aerodrome".
• 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.
• After WW2, the concrete runway at Filton Aerodrome was extended westwards to enable the huge Bristol Brabazon airliner to take-off safely.

Facts about MacDill Air Force Base (MCF):

• In addition to being known as "MacDill Air Force Base", another name for MCF is "MacDill AFB".
• The closest airport to MacDill Air Force Base (MCF) is Peter O. Knight Airport (TPF), which is located only 6 miles (10 kilometers) NE of MCF.
• In February 1945, the 323d Combat Crew Training Wing was established at the base with a mission of training B-29 Superfortress aircrews.
• All of these airfields came under the jurisdiction of Third Air Force.
• Also located at MacDill are a division of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, the Joint Communications Support Element, the Florida Air National Guard's 290th Joint Communications Support Squadron, the Navy Reserve Forces Command's Navy Operational Support Center Tampa, the US Army's 297th Military Intelligence Battalion, the Precision Measurement Equipment Laboratory, activities of the U.S.
• In addition to the antisubmarine mission, another prewar mission of MacDill was "Project X" the ferrying of combat aircraft eastward to the Philippines via ferrying routes set up by Ferrying Command over South Atlantic Ocean and Central Africa.
• The furthest airport from MacDill Air Force Base (MCF) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,436 miles (18,405 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.