Nonstop flight route between Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Aniak, Alaska, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Aniak Airport (ANI), Aniak, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,620 miles (or 7,436 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 NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component and Aniak 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 NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component and Aniak 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 NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE):

• Normally, only a certain number of the E-3As and TCAs are present at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen at any given time.
• In January 1980 the first E-3A Component personnel started arriving at the base, and in October 1980 the NATO Defence Planning Committee granted the E-3A Component the status of a NATO International Military Headquarters.
• Because of NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component's relatively low elevation of 296 feet, planes can take off or land at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component 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.
• Since that time, most of the buildings on base have been renovated to present day standards and several new buildings have been erected.
• Since coming into service in the early 1980s, the aircraft and their onboard systems and associated ground-based equipment have undergone regular upgrading.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The closest airport to NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Merzbrück Airfield (AAH), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) SSE of GKE.
• The furthest airport from NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 11,929 miles (19,198 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.
• Following NATO’s decision to establish the NATO Airborne Early Warning & Control Force program and to make the base near Teveren the Main Operating Base of the E­3A Component, a major construction program was started in 1980 to modify the operational and support facilities.

Facts about Aniak Airport (ANI):

• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 18,526 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 16,255 enplanements in 2009, and 16,394 in 2010.
• Aniak Airport (ANI) has 2 runways.
• Because of Aniak Airport's relatively low elevation of 89 feet, planes can take off or land at Aniak 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 Aniak Airport (ANI) is Chuathbaluk Airport (CHU), which is located only 11 miles (17 kilometers) E of ANI.
• The furthest airport from Aniak Airport (ANI) is George Airport (GRJ), which is located 10,530 miles (16,946 kilometers) away in George, South Africa.