Nonstop flight route between Gilgit, Pakistan and East London, South Africa:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from GIL to ELS:
Share this route:
Jump to:
- About this route
- GIL Airport Information
- ELS Airport Information
- Facts about GIL
- Facts about ELS
- Map of Nearest Airports to GIL
- List of Nearest Airports to GIL
- Map of Furthest Airports from GIL
- List of Furthest Airports from GIL
- Map of Nearest Airports to ELS
- List of Nearest Airports to ELS
- Map of Furthest Airports from ELS
- List of Furthest Airports from ELS
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Gilgit Airport (GIL), Gilgit, Pakistan and East London Airport (ELS), East London, South Africa would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,633 miles (or 9,065 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 Gilgit Airport and East London 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 Gilgit Airport and East London Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GIL / OPGT |
Airport Name: | Gilgit Airport |
Location: | Gilgit, Pakistan |
GPS Coordinates: | 35°55'6"N by 74°20'0"E |
Area Served: | Gilgit, Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan |
Operator/Owner: | Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 4796 feet (1,462 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from GIL |
More Information: | GIL Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | ELS / FAEL |
Airport Name: | East London Airport |
Location: | East London, South Africa |
GPS Coordinates: | 33°2'5"S by 27°49'17"E |
Area Served: | East London, Eastern Cape, South Africa |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 436 feet (133 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from ELS |
More Information: | ELS Maps & Info |
Facts about Gilgit Airport (GIL):
- The closest airport to Gilgit Airport (GIL) is Chilas Airport (CHB), which is located 37 miles (59 kilometers) SSW of GIL.
- Gilgit Airport (GIL) currently has only 1 runway.
- Because of Gilgit Airport's high elevation of 4,796 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at GIL. Combined with a high temperature, this could make GIL a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- The furthest airport from Gilgit Airport (GIL) is Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which is located 11,793 miles (18,979 kilometers) away in Easter Island, Chile.
Facts about East London Airport (ELS):
- The furthest airport from East London Airport (ELS) is Kalaupapa Airport (LUP), which is located 11,569 miles (18,618 kilometers) away in Kalaupapa, Hawaii, United States.
- The airport had an inauspicious beginning in 1927, when Lieut Colonel Alistair Miller asked the East London town council to help establish a municipal aerodrome at Woodbrook, west of the city.
- The closest airport to East London Airport (ELS) is Port Alfred Airport (AFD), which is located 65 miles (105 kilometers) WSW of ELS.
- In 1965 the airport was again moved, this time to its present site, 9 km west of the city centre.
- Because of East London Airport's relatively low elevation of 436 feet, planes can take off or land at East London 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.
- East London Airport (ELS) has 2 runways.
- In 1944 a new airport was built at Collondale, about 2 km west of the present terminal building.