Nonstop flight route between Gush Katif, Israel and Del Rio, Texas, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Gaza Airstrip/Gush Katif Airport (GHK), Gush Katif, Israel and Laughlin Air Force Base (DLF), Del Rio, Texas, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,308 miles (or 11,760 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 Gaza Airstrip/Gush Katif Airport and Laughlin 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 Gaza Airstrip/Gush Katif Airport and Laughlin 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 Gaza Airstrip/Gush Katif Airport (GHK):

• Because of Gaza Airstrip/Gush Katif Airport's relatively low elevation of 107 feet, planes can take off or land at Gaza Airstrip/Gush Katif 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 closest airport to Gaza Airstrip/Gush Katif Airport (GHK) is Yasser Arafat International Airport (CLOSED) (GZA), which is located only 8 miles (14 kilometers) S of GHK.
• The UNRWA Khan Younis refugee camp is adjacent to and south of the airfield, and the UNRWA Khan Younis Vocational Training Centre, built in 2007, is immediately south of the runway.
• The furthest airport from Gaza Airstrip/Gush Katif Airport (GHK) is Rurutu Airport (RUR), which is located 11,728 miles (18,874 kilometers) away in Rurutu, French Polynesia.
• As part of the unilateral disengagement of Israel from Gaza, Jewish settlers were evicted from the Gush Katif area in 2004 and 2005.
• Gaza Airstrip/Gush Katif Airport (GHK) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Laughlin Air Force Base (DLF):

• In 1961, Headquarters US Air Force notified Laughlin officials their mission would expand to again include an Air Training Command undergraduate pilot training program.
• Today, aircraft flown at Laughlin include the T-6A Texan II, the T-38C Talon and T-1A Jayhawk.
• Aside from the reservoir outside of Del Rio for fishing and some lake diving, most forms of recreation are either in the town of Del Rio or across the border in Ciudad Acuña, however current DoD policy does not allow travel across the border for military personnel.
• Laughlin U-2s were among the first to provide photographic evidence of Soviet missile installations in Cuba in 1962 when 4080th U-2 pilot Major Steve Heyser flew his U-2C over Cuba after taking off from Edwards AFB, California.
• Park University offers onsite and online classes on base.
• The residential area of the base is a census-designated place, with a population of 1,569 at the 2010 census.
• The closest airport to Laughlin Air Force Base (DLF) is Del Rio International Airport (DRT), which is located only 9 miles (15 kilometers) W of DLF.
• Laughlin AFB was originally named Laughlin Army Air Field on March 3, 1943, after Jack T.
• Laughlin AFB, the largest pilot training base in the USAF, is home to the 47th Flying Training Wing of the Air Education and Training Command.
• The furthest airport from Laughlin Air Force Base (DLF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,241 miles (18,091 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.