Nonstop flight route between Gbangbatok, Sierra Leone and Pituffik, Greenland:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from GBK to THU:
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- About this route
- GBK Airport Information
- THU Airport Information
- Facts about GBK
- Facts about THU
- Map of Nearest Airports to GBK
- List of Nearest Airports to GBK
- Map of Furthest Airports from GBK
- List of Furthest Airports from GBK
- Map of Nearest Airports to THU
- List of Nearest Airports to THU
- Map of Furthest Airports from THU
- List of Furthest Airports from THU
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Gbangbatok Airport (GBK), Gbangbatok, Sierra Leone and Thule Air Base (THU), Pituffik, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,177 miles (or 8,331 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 Gbangbatok Airport and Thule Air 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 Gbangbatok Airport and Thule Air Base. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | GBK / GFGK |
| Airport Name: | Gbangbatok Airport |
| Location: | Gbangbatok, Sierra Leone |
| GPS Coordinates: | 7°48'45"N by 12°22'40"W |
| Area Served: | Gbangbatok |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 75 feet (23 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from GBK |
| More Information: | GBK Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | THU / BGTL |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Pituffik, Greenland |
| GPS Coordinates: | 76°31'51"N by 68°42'11"W |
| View all routes: | Routes from THU |
| More Information: | THU Maps & Info |
Facts about Gbangbatok Airport (GBK):
- Because of Gbangbatok Airport's relatively low elevation of 75 feet, planes can take off or land at Gbangbatok 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.
- Gbangbatok Airport (GBK) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Gbangbatok Airport (GBK) is Mota Lava Airport (MTV), which is nearly antipodal to Gbangbatok Airport (meaning Gbangbatok Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Mota Lava Airport), and is located 12,032 miles (19,364 kilometers) away in Mota Lava, Vanuatu.
- The closest airport to Gbangbatok Airport (GBK) is Sherbro International Airport (BTE), which is located 22 miles (35 kilometers) SSW of GBK.
Facts about Thule Air Base (THU):
- In 1954, the 378 m Globecom Tower, a tower for military radio communication, was built at Northmountain.
- A cluster of huts known as Pituffik stood on the wide plain where the base was built in 1951.
- After the German occupation of Denmark on 9 April 1940, Henrik Kauffmann Danish Ambassador to the United States, made an agreement "In the name of the king" with the United States authorizing the United States to defend the Danish colonies on Greenland from German aggression - this agreement faced Kaufmann with a charge of high treason.
- In addition to being known as "Thule Air Base", another name for THU is "Thule AB".
- In 1959, the airbase was the main staging point for the construction of Camp Century, some 150 mi from the base.
- Thule became an Air Force Space Command base in 1982.
- The furthest airport from Thule Air Base (THU) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 9,883 miles (15,905 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
- The closest airport to Thule Air Base (THU) is Savissivik Heliport (SVR), which is located 69 miles (111 kilometers) ESE of THU.
