Nonstop flight route between Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Newburgh, New York, United States:
Departure Airport:

Arrival Airport:

Distance from GKE to SWF:
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- About this route
- GKE Airport Information
- SWF Airport Information
- Facts about GKE
- Facts about SWF
- 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 SWF
- List of Nearest Airports to SWF
- Map of Furthest Airports from SWF
- List of Furthest Airports from SWF
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Stewart International Airport (SWF), Newburgh, New York, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,694 miles (or 5,944 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 Stewart 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 Stewart International 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: | SWF / KSWF |
Airport Name: | Stewart International Airport |
Location: | Newburgh, New York, United States |
GPS Coordinates: | 41°30'15"N by 74°6'16"W |
Area Served: | Hudson Valley |
Operator/Owner: | State of New York |
Airport Type: | Public / Military |
Elevation: | 491 feet (150 meters) |
# of Runways: | 2 |
View all routes: | Routes from SWF |
More Information: | SWF 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 Component operates seventeen Boeing E-3A AWACS aircraft all of which are based on the Boeing 707 airframe Trainer Cargo Aircraft but which have since been retired).
- 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.
- 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.
- The E-3A Component is NATO's first operational flying unit with multinational manning.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Facts about Stewart International Airport (SWF):
- In 1934 Douglas MacArthur, then superintendent of the United States Military Academy, proposed flight training cadets at the airport.
- The closest airport to Stewart International Airport (SWF) is Orange County Airport (MGJ), which is located only 8 miles (13 kilometers) W of SWF.
- During World War II many barracks and other buildings, which still stand, were built on the base.
- Stewart International Airport (SWF) has 2 runways.
- Because of Stewart International Airport's relatively low elevation of 491 feet, planes can take off or land at Stewart 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.
- The next year the state transferred control from MTA to its own Department of Transportation, with a mandate to improve and develop the airport.
- But those people who remained or moved up from more crowded areas to the south had begun to enjoy the outdoor recreation possibilities the lands, referred to variously as the Stewart Properties or the buffer, offered.
- The furthest airport from Stewart International Airport (SWF) is Margaret River Airport (MGV), which is located 11,712 miles (18,848 kilometers) away in Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia.
- Stewart was one of the many regional airports to be used during the Emergency Ground Stop after the September 11th Attacks, taking in dozens of planes forced to land.