Nonstop flight route between Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and San Luis Obispo, California, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from GKE to SBP:
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- About this route
- GKE Airport Information
- SBP Airport Information
- Facts about GKE
- Facts about SBP
- Map of Nearest Airports to GKE
- List of Nearest Airports to GKE
- Map of Furthest Airports from GKE
- List of Furthest Airports from GKE
- Map of Nearest Airports to SBP
- List of Nearest Airports to SBP
- Map of Furthest Airports from SBP
- List of Furthest Airports from SBP
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport (SBP), San Luis Obispo, California, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,659 miles (or 9,107 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 San Luis Obispo County Regional 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 San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | GKE / ETNG |
Airport Name: | NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component |
Location: | Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany |
GPS Coordinates: | 50°57'38"N by 6°2'33"E |
Operator/Owner: | NATO |
Airport Type: | Military |
Elevation: | 296 feet (90 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from GKE |
More Information: | GKE Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
IATA / ICAO Codes: | SBP / KSBP |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | San Luis Obispo, California, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 35°14'12"N by 120°38'30"W |
Operator/Owner: | San Luis Obispo County |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 212 feet (65 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from SBP |
More Information: | SBP Maps & Info |
Facts about NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE):
- The E-3A Component is NATO's first operational flying unit with multinational manning.
- 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.
- Normally, only a certain number of the E-3As and TCAs are present at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen at any given time.
- NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen is located near Geilenkirchen, Germany.
- The Component’s multinational, fully integrated workforce consists of more than 3,000 military and civilian personnel from 16 NATO member nations.
- 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.
- 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.
- E-3A Component flying operations began in February 1982 after delivery of the first E3A aircraft.
Facts about San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport (SBP):
- The furthest airport from San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport (SBP) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,446 miles (18,421 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
- The closest airport to San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport (SBP) is O'Sullivan Army Heliport (CSL), which is located only 8 miles (14 kilometers) NW of SBP.
- Because of San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 212 feet, planes can take off or land at San Luis Obispo County Regional 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.
- San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport (SBP) has 2 runways.
- In addition to being known as "San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport", another name for SBP is "McChesney Field".
- The federal government took over the airport during World War II and turned control back to the county in 1946.
- The airport had Delta Connection nonstop Canadair CRJ-200 regional jet service to Salt Lake City which ended on September 1, 2008.