Nonstop flight route between Winter Haven, Florida, United States and Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport (GIF), Winter Haven, Florida, United States and Goma Airport (GOM), Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,548 miles (or 12,148 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 Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport and Goma 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 Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport and Goma 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 Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport (GIF):

• Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport (GIF) has 2 runways.
• For the 12-month period ending November 17, 2009, the airport had 60,000 general aviation aircraft operations, an average of 164 per day.
• The closest airport to Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport (GIF) is Bartow Municipal Airport (BOW), which is located only 8 miles (14 kilometers) SSW of GIF.
• In addition to being known as "Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport", another name for GIF is "Winter Haven Municipal Airport".
• The furthest airport from Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport (GIF) is Shark Bay Airport (MJK), which is located 11,482 miles (18,478 kilometers) away in Monkey Mia, Western Australia, Australia.
• Because of Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport's relatively low elevation of 145 feet, planes can take off or land at Winter Haven's Gilbert 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.
• During World War II, Gilbert Field was an auxiliary airfield for the Lakeland School of Aeronautics at the Lakeland Lodwick Field airport.

Facts about Goma Airport (GOM):

• The closest airport to Goma Airport (GOM) is Gisenyi Airport (GYI), which is located only 2 miles (2 kilometers) ESE of GOM.
• On 19 November 2009, Compagnie Africaine d'Aviation Flight 3711, operated by McDonnell Douglas MD-82 9Q-CAB overran the runway on landing, suffering substantial damage.
• The furthest airport from Goma Airport (GOM) is Cassidy International Airport (CXI), which is located 11,981 miles (19,282 kilometers) away in Christmas Island, Kiribati.
• Goma Airport (GOM) currently has only 1 runway.
• On 15 April 2008, a Hewa Bora Airways DC-9 overshot the runway during an aborted takeoff and crashed into the marketplace immediately to the south of the airport, killing over 40 people.
• Because of Goma Airport's high elevation of 5,089 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at GOM. Combined with a high temperature, this could make GOM a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.