Nonstop flight route between Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Storm Lake, Iowa, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from GKE to SLB:
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- About this route
- GKE Airport Information
- SLB Airport Information
- Facts about GKE
- Facts about SLB
- 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 SLB
- List of Nearest Airports to SLB
- Map of Furthest Airports from SLB
- List of Furthest Airports from SLB
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Storm Lake Municipal Airport (SLB), Storm Lake, Iowa, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 4,437 miles (or 7,140 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 Storm Lake Municipal 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 Storm Lake Municipal 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: | SLB / KSLB |
Airport Name: | Storm Lake Municipal Airport |
Location: | Storm Lake, Iowa, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 42°35'49"N by 95°14'26"W |
Operator/Owner: | City of Storm Lake |
Airport Type: | Public |
Elevation: | 1488 feet (454 meters) |
# of Runways: | 3 |
View all routes: | Routes from SLB |
More Information: | SLB Maps & Info |
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.
- NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
- Since that time, most of the buildings on base have been renovated to present day standards and several new buildings have been erected.
- Flying operations at Geilenkirchen ended in January 1968 and the installation was handed over to the German Air Force in March 1968.
- E-3A Component flying operations began in February 1982 after delivery of the first E3A aircraft.
- 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.
- The Component’s multinational, fully integrated workforce consists of more than 3,000 military and civilian personnel from 16 NATO member nations.
- Normally, only a certain number of the E-3As and TCAs are present at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen at any given time.
- 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.
Facts about Storm Lake Municipal Airport (SLB):
- The furthest airport from Storm Lake Municipal Airport (SLB) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 10,697 miles (17,214 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Storm Lake Municipal Airport (SLB) has 3 runways.
- The closest airport to Storm Lake Municipal Airport (SLB) is Spencer Municipal Airport (SPW), which is located 39 miles (63 kilometers) N of SLB.