Nonstop flight route between Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Kangerlussuaq, Greenland:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from GKE to SFJ:
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- About this route
- GKE Airport Information
- SFJ Airport Information
- Facts about GKE
- Facts about SFJ
- 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 SFJ
- List of Nearest Airports to SFJ
- Map of Furthest Airports from SFJ
- List of Furthest Airports from SFJ
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Kangerlussuaq Airport (SFJ) (SFJ), Kangerlussuaq, Greenland would travel a Great Circle distance of 2,197 miles (or 3,535 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 relatively short distance between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component and Kangerlussuaq Airport (SFJ), the route shown on this map most likely still appears to be a straight line.
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: | SFJ / BGSF |
Airport Names: |
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Location: | Kangerlussuaq, Greenland |
GPS Coordinates: | 67°1'0"N by 50°41'21"W |
Area Served: | Kangerlussuaq, Greenland |
Operator/Owner: | Mittarfeqarfiit |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 165 feet (50 meters) |
# of Runways: | 1 |
View all routes: | Routes from SFJ |
More Information: | SFJ Maps & Info |
Facts about NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE):
- The fleet of E-3's has remained in operation since the Cold War and has adapted its mission to emerging security threats, primarily in European airspace.
- 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.
- NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen is located in the Federal Republic of Germany, near the village of Teveren and six kilometers west of the town of Geilenkirchen.
- 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.
- Major construction on the base initially included a new 3,000-metre runway with a width of 45 metres, as well as aprons and taxiways, a control tower, an Information Technology Wing building, on-base accommodation and major renovation of the four existing hangars.
- 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.
- 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.
- The E-3A Component directly employs more than 3,000 personnel at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen and therefore has a significant economic impact in the surrounding communities.
- Normally, only a certain number of the E-3As and TCAs are present at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen at any given time.
- Flying operations at Geilenkirchen ended in January 1968 and the installation was handed over to the German Air Force in March 1968.
- NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
Facts about Kangerlussuaq Airport (SFJ) (SFJ):
- At a late 2011 Air Greenland meeting, plans to move the main Greenland intercontinental air hub away from Kangerlussuaq were agreed upon.
- Because of Kangerlussuaq Airport (SFJ)'s relatively low elevation of 165 feet, planes can take off or land at Kangerlussuaq Airport (SFJ) 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 Kangerlussuaq Airport (SFJ) (SFJ) is Sisimiut Airport (JHS), which is located 82 miles (132 kilometers) W of SFJ.
- The furthest airport from Kangerlussuaq Airport (SFJ) (SFJ) is Hobart International Airport (HBA), which is located 10,633 miles (17,112 kilometers) away in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
- Access to several research camps on the Greenland ice sheet, including the Danish field camp North GRIP and the American Summit Camp, is handled through Kangerlussuaq via the 109th Airlift Wing of the New York Air National Guard.
- Kangerlussuaq Airport (SFJ) (SFJ) currently has only 1 runway.
- In the 1950s, transatlantic civilian flights began using the air base for refuelling.
- In addition to being known as "Kangerlussuaq Airport (SFJ)", other names for SFJ include "Mittarfik Kangerlussuaq" and "Kangerlussuaq Lufthavn".
- Kangerlussuaq Airport (SFJ) handled 133,381 passengers last year.