Nonstop flight route between Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Apartadó, Colombia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Antonio Roldán Betancourt Airport (APO), Apartadó, Colombia would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,485 miles (or 8,827 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 Antonio Roldán Betancourt 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 Antonio Roldán Betancourt 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):

• The Component operates seventeen Boeing E-3A AWACS aircraft all of which are based on the Boeing 707 airframe Trainer Cargo Aircraft but which have since been retired).
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• An Economic Impact Study compiled by the NATO E-3A Component shows a 2008 economic impact of 275.8 million euro within a 200-kilometer radius of the base.
• 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 E-3A Component is NATO's first­ operational flying unit with multinational manning.
• 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.
• 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.
• Surrounded by farmland and a natural woodland reserve, the base was originally built by the Royal Air Force after World War II and operated as RAF Geilenkirchen from 1953 onwards.
• The Component’s multinational, fully integrated workforce consists of more than 3,000 military and civilian personnel from 16 NATO member nations.
• Since coming into service in the early 1980s, the aircraft and their onboard systems and associated ground-based equipment have undergone regular upgrading.

Facts about Antonio Roldán Betancourt Airport (APO):

• Antonio Roldán Betancourt Airport (APO) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Antonio Roldán Betancourt Airport (APO) is Radin Inten II Airport (RIA II) (TKG), which is nearly antipodal to Antonio Roldán Betancourt Airport (meaning Antonio Roldán Betancourt Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Radin Inten II Airport (RIA II)), and is located 12,217 miles (19,661 kilometers) away in Bandar Lampung, Sumatra, Indonesia.
• In addition to being known as "Antonio Roldán Betancourt Airport", another name for APO is "Aeropuerto Antonio Roldán Betancourt".
• Because of Antonio Roldán Betancourt Airport's relatively low elevation of 46 feet, planes can take off or land at Antonio Roldán Betancourt 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 Antonio Roldán Betancourt Airport (APO) is Alcides Fernández Airport (ACD), which is located 63 miles (101 kilometers) NW of APO.