Nonstop flight route between Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Santa Cruz, Bolivia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE), Geilenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and Viru Viru International Airport (VVI), Santa Cruz, Bolivia would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,306 miles (or 10,148 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 Viru Viru 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 Viru Viru International 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):

• 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.
• 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.
• Since coming into service in the early 1980s, the aircraft and their onboard systems and associated ground-based equipment have undergone regular upgrading.
• NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen E–3A Component (GKE) currently has only 1 runway.
• 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.
• E-3A Component flying operations began in February 1982 after delivery of the first E­3A aircraft.
• Flying operations at Geilenkirchen ended in January 1968 and the installation was handed over to the German Air Force in March 1968.

Facts about Viru Viru International Airport (VVI):

• A new modern airport for Santa Cruz was conceived in 1976, to replace the obsolete El Trompillo Airport.
• Viru Viru International Airport (VVI) currently has only 1 runway.
• On 1 March 1997 the Government of Bolivia entered into a 25-year contract with Airport Group International to operate the three largest airports in Bolivia – El Alto International Airport in La Paz, Jorge Wilstermann International Airport in Cochabamba and Viru Viru International Airport.
• The closest airport to Viru Viru International Airport (VVI) is El Trompillo Airport (SRZ), which is located only 12 miles (19 kilometers) SSW of VVI.
• The furthest airport from Viru Viru International Airport (VVI) is San Fernando Airport (SFE), which is nearly antipodal to Viru Viru International Airport (meaning Viru Viru International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from San Fernando Airport), and is located 12,198 miles (19,631 kilometers) away in San Fernando City, La Union, Philippines.