Nonstop flight route between Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Sault Ste Marie, Michigan, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Chippewa County International Airport (CIU), Sault Ste Marie, Michigan, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,879 miles (or 6,242 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 Chippewa County International 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 Chippewa County International 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):

• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
• The Component’s multinational, fully integrated workforce consists of more than 3,000 military and civilian personnel from 16 NATO member nations.
• 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.
• 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 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.
• 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.
• 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 Chippewa County International Airport (CIU):

• The airport opened a new passenger terminal in September 2002.
• The closest airport to Chippewa County International Airport (CIU) is Kincheloe Air Force Base (INR), which is located only 0 mile (0 kilometer) N of CIU.
• Because of Chippewa County International Airport's relatively low elevation of 799 feet, planes can take off or land at Chippewa County International 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 furthest airport from Chippewa County International Airport (CIU) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,103 miles (17,869 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• Chippewa County International Airport (CIU) has 2 runways.