Nonstop flight route between Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Willemstad, Curaçao, Kingdom of the Netherlands:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Hato International Airport Curaçao International Airport (CUR), Willemstad, Curaçao, Kingdom of the Netherlands would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,915 miles (or 7,910 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 Hato International Airport Curaçao 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 Hato International Airport Curaçao 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):

• 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.
• 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.
• E-3A Component flying operations began in February 1982 after delivery of the first E­3A aircraft.
• 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.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen is located near Geilenkirchen, Germany.
• Flying operations at Geilenkirchen ended in January 1968 and the installation was handed over to the German Air Force in March 1968.
• 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.
• 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 Hato International Airport Curaçao International Airport (CUR):

• The closest airport to Hato International Airport Curaçao International Airport (CUR) is Flamingo International Airport (BON), which is located 47 miles (75 kilometers) E of CUR.
• The furthest airport from Hato International Airport Curaçao International Airport (CUR) is Adisucipto International Airport (JOG), which is nearly antipodal to Hato International Airport Curaçao International Airport (meaning Hato International Airport Curaçao International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Adisucipto International Airport), and is located 12,130 miles (19,521 kilometers) away in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.
• Because of Hato International Airport Curaçao International Airport's relatively low elevation of 29 feet, planes can take off or land at Hato International Airport Curaçao 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.
• Hato International Airport Curaçao International Airport (CUR) currently has only 1 runway.
• The west end of the airport is a USAF Forward Operating Base.