Nonstop flight route between Galena, Alaska, United States and Melbourne, Victoria, Australia:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from GAL to MEB:
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- About this route
- GAL Airport Information
- MEB Airport Information
- Facts about GAL
- Facts about MEB
- Map of Nearest Airports to GAL
- List of Nearest Airports to GAL
- Map of Furthest Airports from GAL
- List of Furthest Airports from GAL
- Map of Nearest Airports to MEB
- List of Nearest Airports to MEB
- Map of Furthest Airports from MEB
- List of Furthest Airports from MEB
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL), Galena, Alaska, United States and Essendon Airport (MEB), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,741 miles (or 12,459 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 Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport 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 Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport and Essendon Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GAL / PAGA |
Airport Names: |
|
Location: | Galena, Alaska, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 64°44'9"N by 156°56'15"W |
Area Served: | Galena, Alaska |
Operator/Owner: | State of Alaska DOT&PF - Northern Region |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 153 feet (47 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from GAL |
More Information: | GAL Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | MEB / YMEN |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
GPS Coordinates: | 37°43'41"S by 144°54'6"E |
Area Served: | Melbourne |
Operator/Owner: | Zavanti Holdings Pty. Ltd. |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 282 feet (86 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from MEB |
More Information: | MEB Maps & Info |
Facts about Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL):
- In addition to being known as "Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport", another name for GAL is "(former Galena Air Force Base)".
- The furthest airport from Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 10,313 miles (16,598 kilometers) away in George, South Africa.
- As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 7,784 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 7,447 enplanements in 2009, and 12,421 in 2010.
- The closest airport to Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) is Koyukuk Airport (KYU), which is located 25 miles (41 kilometers) WNW of GAL.
- Because of Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport's relatively low elevation of 153 feet, planes can take off or land at Edward G. Pitka Sr. 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.
- As Galena Air Force Base, it was used by the USAF during the Cold War as an interceptor base for aircraft patrolling the western areas of Alaska.
- Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport (GAL) has 2 runways.
Facts about Essendon Airport (MEB):
- Essendon Airport (MEB) has 2 runways.
- 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.
- In addition to being known as "Essendon Airport", another name for MEB is "Melbourne/Essendon".
- The airport was extended with additional land during the 1930s.
- On 31 January 1945, a heavily-modified Stinson Model A registered VH-UYY and named Tokana, operated by Australian National Airways, departed from Essendon Airport for the daily flight to Kerang.
- In 2001, the Commonwealth Government sold its management rights for the airport to Edgelear Pty.
- The closest airport to Essendon Airport (MEB) is Melbourne Airport (MEL), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) NW of MEB.
- The 1920s period saw the great pioneering aviation flights of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith who visited the airport on several occasions.
- In 2007, the airport was re-designed under a new master plan, as part of the Essendon Fields development.
- In 1959 Cabinet approved the acquisition of 2,167 ha in Tullamarine for the purpose of a new international airport, which began construction in the 1960s and was ready to handle aircraft by 1967, but not passenger flights.
- 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.
- 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.