Nonstop flight route between Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Iron Mountain / Kingsford, 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 Ford Airport (IMT), Iron Mountain / Kingsford, Michigan, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,029 miles (or 6,485 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 Ford 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 Ford 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 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.
• 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.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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 E-3A Component is NATO's first­ operational flying unit with multinational manning.
• 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.
• Since coming into service in the early 1980s, the aircraft and their onboard systems and associated ground-based equipment have undergone regular upgrading.
• E-3A Component flying operations began in February 1982 after delivery of the first E­3A aircraft.

Facts about Ford Airport (IMT):

• Ford Airport (IMT) has 2 runways.
• Ford Airport is a county owned, public use airport in Dickinson County, Michigan.
• The furthest airport from Ford Airport (IMT) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,966 miles (17,647 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Ford Airport (IMT) is Delta County Airport (ESC), which is located 50 miles (80 kilometers) E of IMT.
• As per Federal Aviation Administration records, the airport had 3,998 passenger boardings in calendar year 2008, 5,475 enplanements in 2009, and 6,943 in 2010.